


the scientific method

by hereonourstreet



Category: Promare (2019)
Genre: Awkward Crush, Awkward Flirting, M/M, Post-Canon, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-19
Updated: 2019-12-20
Packaged: 2021-01-24 00:08:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 35,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21328963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hereonourstreet/pseuds/hereonourstreet
Summary: Question: How is Galo going to navigate his new world?Research: Galo was never very good at this step.Hypothesis: Galo needs certain people by his side.Experiment: This is Galo's favorite part.Analysis: Galo's soul isn't the only thing on fire.Conclusion: Oh... shit.Prologue is second person but the rest of the fic is third person. Prologue and then PROBABLY six chapters, updated every Tuesday!
Relationships: Lio Fotia/Galo Thymos
Comments: 53
Kudos: 322





	1. abstract

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The city actually calls you soulmates. Maybe it’s because of your burning firefighter soul. That was a fire that couldn’t be put out; it could only be amplified and Lio’s soul burns just as bright as yours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (small reminder: this is in second person but the rest of the fic is third)

The new world started with a fist bump.

You stood facing the sun with your team behind you; the team that had always meant so much to you and had now grown by one. Actually, it had grown by thousands, but there was one specific new member that meant a bit more to you than the rest. You told him he was going to help clean up. You told him he was going to help clean up Promepolis. Clear it of the dusty debris and total destruction it had just endured. You meant physically. That’s all you were asking of him. You didn’t know he was going to help clean up a lot more than the city.

There was a sort of relief the few days that followed. Everything was starting over; a new beginning. You didn’t know you wanted that. You thought everything was great the way it was. You were a Burning Rescue member, a hero in the eyes of the city. Your life was fighting the Burnish. Your life was sticking up for what was right. Your life was Kray Foresight and hearing praise through lies from his pitchfork tongue.

But the city doesn’t need Burning Rescue anymore. Your main purpose was to rescue people from the Burnish. Without the Promare, there are no more Burnish. So you don’t really know what you are anymore. And without Kray -

There’s nothing to say about that. He’s gone - in prison, like he belongs - and there’s no use dwelling over him. People still give you these sorrowful, sympathetic looks when his name is mentioned in your presence. It’s the worst part of all this because you know they’re just feeling bad for you but you feel like a pathetic puppy that followed his owner to the ends of the Earth only to find out his owner was actually trying to be his master and couldn’t care less about him anyway. When Kray Foresight feigned pride in you, the entire world stopped spinning for just a moment.

Was it that you couldn’t possibly have guessed what Kray was doing? Or were you just too stupid to see it?

The city still considers you a hero. And since Burnish crimes are no longer considered terrorist acts, Lio is a hero, too. You didn’t really have to fight too hard in his defense, but you would have. You couldn’t have done it without him. He was your co-pilot, after all. Your teammate. Your partner.

Your soulmate.

You’ve had the interim political system that was put in place explained to you several times but you still don’t understand it. You probably could if you actually tried, but that’s one advantage of being considered an idiot: no one expects you to understand anything. Lio is most patient with you for whatever reason, though he’s tried to lay it out for you because he got thrown into it himself. He was the leader that Kray Foresight wished he could be, so why wouldn’t he lead Promepolis now? There was a huge push to get him to become mayor and when you first heard the proposition, you burst with pride.

But Lio isn’t sure about it and you guess you can’t blame him. It’s not at all what he wanted to do with his life but he never thought he’d actually achieve the goal he had in the first place. He always thought he’d die trying to save the Burnish. He hadn’t counted on you, he’s said before. He hadn’t expected you. When you asked him what he meant by that, all he said was that he couldn’t have done any of it without you and you grinned, told him you felt the same way and slapped him on the back so hard he fell forward.

But Lio needs a new goal now so he’s considering it. You told him you’d support him no matter what, as long as it didn’t involve killing innocent civilians. “I didn’t kill anyone,” he muttered. “Because I stopped you,” you grinned. He rolled his eyes at you then and poked you hard in the shoulder because that’s what he does now that he can’t produce fire and send it your way. You’re the only one he pokes that hard, though. He says you’re the only one who needs it.

In the meantime, his helping clean Promepolis sort of snowballed into joining the Burning Rescue, not that it was going to last much longer. It’s in the middle of rebranding itself and you want to keep the name and become an elite fire fighting squad. Lio told you the other firefighters don’t really like that and you said they should become elite too, then. This is why you’re not the one going into politics. No, Lio said, you’re not going into politics because you don’t even understand what a mayor is.

No, you thought. You’re not going into politics because standing where Kray stood would be way too much for you. You can’t even decide how you feel about being in the same room as him again and that’s why you haven’t gone to visit him yet. Lio is adamant that you never visit him. Let him rot, he says. But you’re conflicted. Which you know you shouldn’t be; you’re conflicted that you’re conflicted. He’s evil. Pure and simple evil. He was a genocidal megalomaniac committing eugenics. Three words that you comprehend now. You didn’t have much use for them before. But now you understand.

You don’t really know why people worry so much. He wasn’t violent or unstable in the way people think he was. He can’t do much harm anymore. Most of the trouble he caused was under the radar, that was the whole point. He used your house fire as a stepping stone to his goals, but if he doesn’t have a damn giant robot to pilot, he’s not going to wreak much more havoc on the city. His was a long-term goal.

You think about the word rehabilitation a lot. What does it really mean? And are you horrible for wondering if it could happen for Kray? You don’t let Lio know you think about stuff like that.

Because Lio, fairly and rightly, doesn’t want to hear anyone humanizing Kray Foresight. It makes sense. Kray is evil. Sure, he’s Burnish himself, but he’s still pure evil. Logically, you know that. You understand that what Kray did is beyond redemption. Maybe there was some internalized self-hatred or whatever terms people like to throw around, but you knew him intimately - or at least, you thought you did, but he didn’t feel the same. You were on the front lines though; you could see the pupils of his eyes you were so close to him at the end. You know what happened. He was a force of pure destruction. You knew Kray Foresight.

You also know Lio Fotia. He’s a force of his own kind.

He’s not as quiet as people think he is. He’s often soft-spoken, but he’s not quiet. He may not be a chatterbox, but he doesn’t keep his thoughts to himself. He’s a little sarcastic and very witty; always says something you need to hear right when you need to hear it and you don’t know how he does that but he does. He gets passionate. He gets distant. Like any human. Because that’s what he is. Human. The Burnish were human and you always knew that, but it wasn’t until he turned and gave you that look in that cave all those months ago that you really understood: the Burnish were just like you. You didn’t know about the Promare at the time, but it suddenly clicked that they were just trying to get by. Just like you.

Of course they eat. You still feel like a dumbass for that comment. Lio was right to singe your nose for that.

He lived with you for a bit. Gueira and Meis did too. They switched off between the couch and an air mattress and Lio took your second bedroom. That was a great month. Before you knew Lio, Aina used to come over and visit a lot so you never felt too lonely. But after you gained three roommates, you really felt like you had someone there for you. And yeah, it was mostly Lio you felt close to, but Gueira and Meis were fun. There was always someone there to talk to. There was always someone willing to have a good time with you. Gueira and Meis liked to drink a bit and Lio would join in sometimes. You can hold your alcohol but you never had much of a tolerance.

You have a tolerance now.

You got to do the little things that you never did without roommates. The clichés like movie night, game night; new things like house parties - well, apartment parties, technically. You learned new drinking games like Fuck the Dealer and Circle of Death. You’ve seen Gueira and Meis absolutely obliterated. You’ve seen Lio pretty drunk himself. You’ve seen yourself in the mirror, red-cheeked and hair disheveled as you realized you weren’t as sober as you thought you were.

Things were fun. You’d work tirelessly every day, then have fun at night. You’d sleep so soundly because you were so exhausted in the best way. There were no more Burnish flames to lick at your skin. The high mortality rate of Burning Rescue was a thing of the past. You didn’t worry the same way you used to. And it was all because of Lio Fotia.

Then they just left.

They moved out. Gueira and Meis are still together. Lio found his own place. And that was when you first felt real, true loneliness.

You don’t want anyone to know that. You don’t want Lio to feel like you were dependent on him. Because you weren’t. You don’t need Lio around to feel good. But he certainly made you feel better. He was your soulmate.

He still is.

The city actually calls you that. They consider you soulmates. Maybe it’s because of your burning firefighter soul. That was a fire that couldn’t be put out; it could only be amplified and Lio’s soul burns just as bright as yours. It’s not a romantic thing. You sort of think Gueira and Meis may be the same way with each other. Lio was always drifting a little bit, the lone leader in a group of soulmates. But he found his, and it’s you. It’s a responsibility you take very seriously. Some people go their entire lives without finding their other half. Not only did you find yours so young, but it was Lio Fotia of all people. You consider yourself extremely lucky for that.

You never really thought that soulmates could be anything other than romantic. Gueira and Meis aren’t romantic together - that you know of - and neither are you and Lio. But you’re convinced that you’re meant to be. You already were. You’ve already been. Lio de Galon - Galo de Lion - whatever you want to call it. The symbol of your partnership. You don’t know if you’d say you were enemies. You weren’t rivals. But you did grow to understand Lio in a way you didn’t at first.

You don’t know if Lio had to do the same. He may have always understood you. You’re not that hard to get.

But Lio comes easily to you, too. Maybe you’re simple. Maybe people can figure you out in an instant. Maybe that’s why Kray manipulated you so easily. And maybe Lio is complicated - maybe he’s a mysterious man with inner workings that aren’t apparent to everyone.

But they’re apparent to you. You can actually pinpoint the moment you truly, fully understood Lio Fotia, and it was in that cave. Watching him try to save his fellow Burnish; the way he quieted when she lost her life regardless. The way he softly wished her well in death and watched as she faded away. He even took the time to effortlessly explain to you what happened: Burnish are eternal but they turn to ash in death. You were a little speechless because that was when Lio made sense to you.

Of course, at the time, you couldn’t wrap your head around what he was telling you about your idol. But you believed him. You’re not sure why. You’re not sure what possessed you to approach Kray the next day with such certainty that Lio was telling the truth. Maybe it was Lio himself, implanting himself in your brain. Your soul.

Well, no matter what happened: he’s there now and you don’t have any complaints.

He’s the closest you’ve ever come to having a real partner. Aina was always a great friend - she still is - but Lio is your companion. You have Lio the way Aina has her sister. You always understood how important family was even if your own familial dynamic wasn’t exactly the same as Aina and Heris’, but now that you know Lio, you truly understand what it means to have someone you would take a bullet for.

You see him every day. You used to see him in the mornings, when his hair was sticking up and his eyes were sleepy. You’ve seen him with dry skin and bad breath. You’ve seen him in bad moods and bratty moods. You’ve seen him get an attitude with Gueira; talk back to Meis. He’s seen you the same way. You’ve gotten into little fights. Nothing major. Just those moments where you both realize you need some time to yourself to recharge.

But that’s the thing: before Lio, you didn’t understand recharging. You didn’t know you needed that time alone. Lio has taught you so many things worth knowing. You can’t remember your life before Lio Fotia, and it’s only been about four months. It’s weird: he actually makes you feel close to the same way that Kray used to, only there’s a slight difference. You can’t quite pinpoint what it is. Kray made you feel like you were holding your breath for the next big thing to happen to you. Lio makes you feel like each new step is a breath of fresh air. He never fails to lift his fist expectantly when you do something worthwhile, that little smile on his face and fire in his eyes.

When Lio Fotia is proud of you, your entire world opens up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know the prologue is short but i needed to post it to kick my own ass to get this edited. i wrote half of it and then changed my mind how to structure it so i'm reworking it before i finish the rest but rest assured it will be written and completed. i just needed an incentive to get it redone and published. anyway next tuesday will be the first real update!


	2. question

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They spar at least once a week on Burning Rescue HQ’s rooftop and it’s what Galo looks forward to most. It’s nice to have something that only they know.

“I understand it’s shampoo, I just don’t get how it works if it’s soap.”

“You lather it like bars of soap because it’s a bar. But you put it in your hair instead of on your face.”

“But it’s soap.”

“No, it’s a shampoo bar.”

Galo’s head hangs pitifully. 

“What?”

“You lather it up like soap.”

“Right.”

“And then put it in your hair like shampoo.”

“But it’s a bar.”

“Don’t you lather bar soap up?”

“No.”

“What? How do you use it?”

“I just put it on my body.”

“Galo,” Aina interrupts, cutting Remi’s reply off. “Do you just apply bar soap directly to your body?”

“Yeah! Why?”

“Oh, Galo,” Remi says with a happy sigh. “I like you.”

“Why?”

“You’re entertaining.”

“I know!”

“I don’t think that was a compliment,” Aina says. “Have you ever considered lathering soap up in a washcloth and then rubbing the suds on your body?”

Galo shrugs. 

“I guess I could,” he says. “Sounds easier.”

“Sure does,” Remi says under his breath with a hint of a laugh. 

“Galo, don’t you exfoliate?” Lucia asks. Galo nods fervently. 

“I sure do!”

“So you understand skincare but you’ve been rubbing soap bars on your body this whole time?”

“It’s worked,” Galo dismisses. “Anyway, I’ll see you all tomorrow.”

He’s simply trying to take his leave, clock out for the day, and go home to rest. He’s not sure how he got dragged into this conversation, especially because it started with him asking what percent alcohol by volume meant. He can’t recall how it became about personal hygiene, but that’s how most conversations go. He waves goodbye to Varys across the way, who never joins in these group discussions and Varys waves back. Ignis is nowhere to be seen but Galo is too tired to find him. He decides to head out. 

“Hey.”

Aina appears at his side, her voice soft. He's only a few steps away from the group and he looks at her curiously. 

“Hey.”

“Are you going home? I mean, I know you’re leaving but are you going straight home?”

“Yeah, I’m exhausted,” Galo tells her. “I’m hoping I don’t fall right to sleep when I hit the couch.”

“How are you doing?”

Galo scrunches his brow at her and cocks his head to the side. 

“What do you mean?”

“We haven’t been able to talk in a long time,” she says. “I just wanted to know if you’re doing well.”

“What do you mean?” he asks again. “We talk every day!”

“But not a real conversation,” she claims. “It’s always about how Monopoly works or if ‘cabinet’ means ‘tiny cabin.’”

“It does!” Galo cries. “I looked it up!”

“Does it really?”

“Yes!” he insists. “I told you! ‘Ette!’ Means small! Small… cabin! And it makes sense, because cabinets _ are _just tiny spaces to put things in.”

“I believe you.”

“Good,” Galo says, quieter now. He’ll only ever get attention for the things he doesn’t know. No one ever cares when he gets something right. “It’s like that time I realized Solitaire is called that because of the word solitary.”

Aina laughs and Galo suddenly realizes she was right: they haven’t had a _ real _conversation in a long time. Because he hasn’t heard that hearty giggle in a while. It’s such a good laugh. It makes Galo feel comfortable. Like he’s already at home. 

“That’s because most people already knew that.”

“Better late than never,” Galo shrugs. 

He yawns loudly. Burning Rescue HQ really is his second home. He supposes that’s true of everyone with their job, and their coworkers are like their second family. It’s definitely no different for him. Ignis is like a reluctant uncle. Varys is the cool cousin who doesn’t have to say much to impress people. Remi is the annoying nephew and Lucia is the eccentric aunt on the mother’s side. Aina is the sister Galo never had, the one that he’s closest to but tries not to let anyone know. He doesn’t want to be rude and admit Aina might mean a bit more to him than the others. 

And as for the newest member of the family-

“I just wanted to know you’re doing okay.”

“Huh?” Galo asks. Aina’s voice is sincere. Not worried or concerned, just curious. 

“There’s just always so much going on,” she says. “We don’t get to catch up as much and it’s weird. It’s weird not to talk to you.”

“Aw,” Galo says, almost bashful. He’s not sure what else to say but then Ignis pops up so he doesn't have to say anything. And Ignis isn't alone - the newest member of Galo's family is following closely behind. 

“Galo."

Ignis has a deep voice and he really commands the presence of any room he enters. Galo was a lot more uptight around him when they first met, but then he realized he's the calmest guy in the whole place. Still, when he has something to say, Galo stands at attention. He still gives Lio a little wave, though. Lio gives him one back.

"Yes?"

“There’s going to be a ceremony.”

Galo deflates.

“Ugh,” Galo groans, rubbing his hands down his face. “Another one?” Promepolis has had its fair share of _events _ever since the world started anew. To Galo, they've seemed like a desperate attempt to get back to the way things were. To make the city remember what it's like to _be _a city. Without a fearless leader, it's tough. People get restless. City events make people feel more normal again.

“You don’t have to speak at it,” Ignis tells him. “But you both need to attend.” He points at Galo and then crooks a finger back to Lio. Galo frowns.

“Why?”

“Because it’s a memorial for the Burnish.”

Oh. Galo feels a little bad now. He looks over at Lio, who doesn’t move. He’s staring at Galo the same way Ignis is. If he’s offended by Galo’s reaction, he isn’t showing it.

“Alright,” Galo says. “When is it?”

“Not for another few weeks. I’ll let you know the exact date when I have it.”

“Why’d you come and tell me now, then?”

“They want to know you’re going to come,” he says. “They need a firm confirmation.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Galo says, waving his hand around. “Yeah, I’ll go.”

Lio still doesn’t seem put off by Galo’s insincerity. He nods too and Ignis leaves a few moments later. Lio turns to him with blank eyes.

“I care,” Galo assures him. “I just-”

“I get it,” he says. “I’m sick of them, too.”

“I don’t mind them,” Galo shrugs. “I just…”

“When they’re not celebrating you, it’s not as fun,” Lio says with a grin. Galo hates that he’s right.

“When they’re _ sad,” _he corrects. “Celebrations are fun. But memorials are sad.”

Lio raises his eyebrows for a moment.

“I think they just want us at all of them to legitimize them.”

“To what?”

“To make them seem serious,” Aina says abruptly. “I think they just like you to be there because your presence makes them feel official.”

Lio doesn't respond to her. But he does nod to indicate she’s correct.

“Oh.”

“We just have to grin and bear it,” Lio adds.

“Yep,” Galo agrees. He watches Lio for a moment. He’s wearing a t-shirt that actually fits him today. And Burning Rescue pants. “Do you like the Burning Rescue uniform?”

Lio turns to him in absolute confusion. Aina raises an eyebrow, too.

“What?”

“It’s just so different from what you used to wear,” Galo says, smiling. “Don’t you ever miss the frills and the straps?”

“I still wear what I want on the weekends.”

“I know,” Galo says. “You always get strange looks at karaoke.”

“That’s because I’m willingly there with you, who just screams into the microphone.”

“I scream on key.”

“You really don’t,” Aina mutters. She turns and heads to the couch nearby, cleary done with the conversation. Galo frowns.

“But you used to make your own dress code,” Galo says, not allowing this dialogue get away from him. “Now you have to adhere to ours.”

“It’s not that big of a deal.”

“No?”

“No.”

Galo pauses.

“I miss it.”

“Miss what?”

“Your other clothes.”

“I still wear them on the weekends.” He says its very pointedly, aware that he's repeating himself, and then clears his throat. “Plus, it’s nice to have more than one outfit at a time. Putting on clean clothes after a shower is great.”

Galo frowns. He gets that. Lio used to be on the run. He had to make do with a single change of clothes. He’d shower and then get back into the same dirty clothes he’d been wearing. Galo supposes he’s just nostalgic. He’s nostalgic for a time that’s hardly passed. But he’s nostalgic for it because it happened so quickly that he hardly got to experience it. In a week, everything was different. He’s nostalgic for a very specific part of that time. Not all of it. He wishes he knew at the time that he’d want to commit Lio’s little mannerisms to memory. Just to see how much he’s changed since then. He wishes he had taken in something as meaningless as Lio’s clothing at the time because he didn’t know there’d be a time that he’d miss them.

“My little fashionista,” he says finally, hoping that he didn’t sit in silence for too long. It’s all he can think of to say and Lio scoffs at him.

“It was a ridiculous outfit.”

“No!” Galo shouts in genuine despair. “I loved it!”

“It was designed to stay on when I was fighting,” he says. “All the straps and buckles. The asymmetrical jacket.”

Galo never knew that. He learns something new about Lio all the time and it's always more and more fascinating.

“Really?”

“Yes,” Lio insists. “But it was still ridiculous.”

“Why?”

“Look at it.”

“I wish I could,” Galo bemoans. “You never wear it anymore.”

Lio looks at Galo with this little grin that makes Galo’s blood run cold.

“You wanna come over and I’ll put it on just for you?”

His voice has dropped low so that Aina doesn’t hear. But she’s looking over, making eye contact with Galo, who’s rooted to the ground. It sounds almost sensual when Lio says it like that and it leaves Galo sputtering for an answer while trying to look normal for Aina. She furrows her brow at him and Galo’s arm moves on its own. He grabs Lio by the shoulders and uses his other hand to ruffle his hair. 

“Don’t make it sound like a date!” he shouts. Lio struggles against him angrily but Galo has a firm grip. “Not that I blame you! Everyone wants to date Galo Thymos!” He lets go of him and the smaller man immediately starts to finger his hair back into place.

“You always say that, Galo, but I haven’t seen you go on a date _ ever,” _Aina calls over. Galo shrugs.

“Who has the time?” he asks. “I’m too busy saving the city.”

“There’s a lot more time lately,” she points out. Galo waves his hand dismissively. Lio is still glaring. “You could probably find your soulmate now.” She looks at Lio pointedly. “I mean, your other soulmate, of course.”

“You can only have one soulmate!” Galo says, throwing his arm around Lio again. Lio grunts. 

“Stop touching me.”

“I’m doing just fine.” He wraps his arm tighter around Lio’s neck. “I’ll find someone when the time is right.”

“You believe in that?” Aina asks. “Fate, like that?”

“Sure do. I’m positive that it’ll happen when it’s supposed to happen.” 

“Get your arm off me.”

Galo looks down at Lio. His voice drops like Lio’s did, trying to keep another secret from Aina:

“Have you been keeping up?”

Lio smirks abruptly. Galo has changed the subject. Aina looks like she’s paying attention more to her phone than them now. 

“Have you?”

“Sure have.”

“Wanna prove it?”

“Let’s go.”

Galo doesn’t turn back to look. He doesn’t check over his shoulder for Aina’s expression. He’s headed for the stairwell with Lio. He was going to go home and sleep but now they have something more important to tend to.

Lio is very physically talented. He’s fast and good with a lot of weapons, like a sword or a bow. Galo found out the hard way that his experience with Burnish flames transferred easily to the real things. But there’s one thing Lio isn’t: strong. 

He can’t be, really. He’s very small and that doesn’t mean he’s weak by any means, but Galo has more brute strength. He can force his way through situations easily, whereas Lio relies more on cunning to evade people. They’ve known this about each other since day one. It’s the first thing they learned about the other. Galo gets a little sentimental about it. 

In any case, he’s helping Lio gain muscle. And in return, Lio teaches Galo agility. The ability to outrun an opponent. But just as Lio isn’t suited naturally to strength, Galo’s large and imposing frame is a bit more clumsy than Lio’s lithe one and he’s not so great at those quick and darting moves. They tend to best each other by relying on old standbys, but Galo isn’t complaining. 

They spar at least once a week on Burning Rescue HQ’s rooftop and it’s what Galo looks forward to most. 

They’ve never discussed it explicitly, but something tells Galo that Lio feels the same way he does about it: it’s something to share just between themselves. It’s hard when the city calls them inseparable. It feels like people they don’t even know think they understand them. It’s hard for Galo to want anyone to stop showering him in attention though, so he lets it happen and steals away to the rooftop with Lio when he wants a breath. 

It’s nice to have something that only they know.

Plus, Galo likes the physicality. He likes fighting. He likes feeling strong. He gets a weird rush from it all, especially when he manages to pin Lio under his knee. Lio rarely gets the best of him physically, but he sure does manage to evade him a lot. So Galo chalks this up to a win for him, though Lio doesn’t seem to care.

“Get off me.”

“I’m tired,” Galo pants. Lio shakes his head and starts to strain against Galo’s leg.

“Don’t flop onto me again,” he says. “I can’t breathe when you do that.”

“I’m feeling faint.”

“I know you’re messing around, stop it.”

Galo leans forward with a big grin on his face.

“If you smother me and I die, I am going to come back and haunt you for the rest of your days, Galo Thymos.”

Galo grins wider and stands up. There’s something about Lio using his full name that gives him butterflies. It’s what he used to do before they were _ soulmates. _Well, Galo supposes they were always soulmates, they just didn’t know it yet.

“I think I won that one,” he says as Lio sits up and takes a deep breath. He rolls his eyes.

“Finally,” he mutters. “Took you long enough.”

“It’s been a stalemate for almost two weeks now,” Galo whines. “Congratulate me.”

“On what? Putting your shoe on my shirt and getting it dirty?”

“You know things are going to get dirty doing this. You - wait. Is that _my _shirt?” 

Lio grins at him as he starts to pick himself up. He did steal it, about a month ago. It quite literally hangs off him but he pulls it tight and uses a rubber band to secure it in the back. Galo didn’t notice that until now. He doesn’t understand why he wears it at all for these fights. It can’t be comfortable. An oversized shirt while sitting on the couch at home and relaxing for a day - Galo understands that. It’s not like many shirts are too big for him, but he can imagine how cozy that is. Trying to be agile and get the best of someone physically? That can’t be helpful.

“In fact, that’s the third shirt you’ve stolen from me,” Galo says, putting his hand to his chin and looking upwards, trying to recollect exactly how many he’s lost. “At least, I can’t find three of my shirts that I had a month ago.”

“You’ll have to fight me for it.”

“For my own shirt?”

“I successfully stole it, which makes it mine until you win back its honor.”

“I don’t think honor applies to clothing.”

“It was a Mad Burnish rule,” Lio tells him, though something tells Galo that’s a lie. They’re both hunched over a little bit as they’re catching their breath. The sun is setting off in the distance and there’s a warm hue cast on Lio’s face as he stands up straight. “You don’t want to disrespect the legacy of the Mad Burnish, do you?”

Galo grins.

“I disrespected the legacy of the Mad Burnish when I arrested them.”

Lio cocks his head to the side and watches Galo’s eyes as he straightens up, too. 

“You’re so simple,” he says. “Will you ever remember I was caught on purpose?”

“Oh yeah. Well, whatever. You can keep it. You can keep all of them. I get it.”

“Get what?”

“It’s fun to dress like your hero,” Galo grins.

One thing Galo’s noticed: he’s always grinned a lot, but he’s been doing it even more when Lio is around.

“Better be careful,” Lio warns. “One day I might surpass you. I’ll be the Burning Rescue hero.”

“If Burning Rescue even lasts that long,” Galo says, unable to keep that hint of sadness out of his voice. Things are getting better. But there are some things he wish would stay the same. “When you become mayor, try to save this unit, huh?”

“Ha,” Lio laughs coldly. “Yeah, right.”

“You wouldn’t save us?” 

“I wouldn’t become mayor.”

“You made up your mind?”

Lio makes a sound from the back of his throat. He turns away, toward the small barrier that allows them to look off the side of the roof with plenty of concrete still between them and the edge. He walks to it and stares at the sunset.

“Lio?”

“I don’t know,” he says suddenly. “I don’t know how I feel about it.”

“Yeah.”

“There’s too much… there are too many politics in politics.”

Galo nods and approaches him. He comes up on his side and leans onto one arm, facing him.

“I don’t know how it works,” he admits, “but I think you’d be a good leader. You would definitely figure it out. It’s just a question if you want to.”

Lio sighs again.

“Yeah. Exactly. He left a lot of stuff to fix.”

Galo knows he’s talking about Kray. Hearing his name makes him wince sometimes and Lio noticed that. So now he doesn’t use his name if he doesn’t have to, but sometimes Galo thinks that might be worse.

“I’d feel a lot better knowing you were in the one in there doing it, though,” Galo offers. Then he deflates a little. “Then again…”

“Yeah?”

“I felt that way before, too.”

“It’s different,” Lio says quickly. Severely. “I’m not him and I never will be.”

“I know,” Galo shrugs. “I just meant I was comfortable before and everything was actually falling apart. So how I feel isn’t really that important.”

“Kray can rot,” Lio says suddenly. “He can rot for what he did to everyone. Including you.”

Galo should be grateful. He should be appreciative that Lio of all people recognizes just how hurt he was by Kray, especially considering how “hurt” the Burnish were in comparison. Losing a hero really isn’t the same, and even being a captive for a week can’t compete with being experimented on and killed. But Lio has always cared that Galo was hurt. Lio has always cared.

Galo’s entire life was built around Kray. He used to feel like his life didn’t even really start until Kray showed up. He didn’t deem much before that day he was rescued as important, so he doesn’t remember a whole lot from back then. Kray told Galo what to do and Galo did it. Maybe he shouldn’t even be in the Burning Rescue anymore. He was only put here to die.

“Hey,” Lio says softly, turning to Galo and pulling him from his thoughts. “It’s getting dark. I have to meet up with Meis for something.”

“Okay,” Galo nods, hoping that the disappointment isn’t too clear on his face. He always gets sad when he has to leave Lio. Sadder than he should, he thinks. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“You wanna walk out together?”

Galo smiles and pulls on the knot of Lio’s shirt. He frowns and chops his arm backwards to knock him off. 

But when they get back to the main room, Ignis is standing in the doorway of his office.

“Galo.”

“What?”

“Come here.”

He doesn’t sound angry or put out. He never usually sounds angry, but when he calls Galo over it tends to be to scold him for something. But other than fighting on the roof with Lio, he can’t think of anything he’s done recently to earn him a lecture. Plus, he’s pretty sure everyone knows he and Lio go to the roof. They just don’t care. Ignis beckons him into his small office so Galo acquiesces, looking at Lio, unsure. Lio points at the ground, indicating he’ll wait, and Ignis closes the door a bit. It’s still a little ajar so Galo assumes what he’s about to say isn’t top secret.

“I wanted to tell you this but I felt that it would seem… weird. If I did it in front of anyone else.”

“What?” Galo asks, extremely curious. 

“I wanted you to know… that all these ceremonies and stuff you’re doing?”

“Yeah?”

“You deserve them.”

Galo blinks.

“Huh?”

“You deserve to be recognized for what you did and what you continue to do,” Ignis says. His voice is firm and steady but Galo detects a hint of uncertainty in it. “I’m proud of you.”

Galo swallows down hard. He has to get out of here. He’s always known Ignis had a soft side but he didn’t expect to see it like this. He _ never _ expected that Ignis would go _ out of his way _ to tell him something like _ that. _He has a sudden urge to turn and run away, bolt out of there just so he doesn’t have to come up with a way to react but logic prevails - for once.

“I - th- thank you.”

“That’s all,” Ignis says. It takes a total of ten seconds. “You can go back. I just wanted to make sure you knew that.”

Galo nods erratically and then turns toward the door. He opens it slightly and then reconsiders. He hardly said anything in response. He realizes that if he wants more praise… he’ll have to give Ignis an incentive to give it.

“Thank you,” he says again, this time louder and more assured, as he turns back to him. “Thanks, really. That means a lot.”

Ignis simply nods at him.

“The ceremonies are nice but sometimes they feel fake,” he admits. “I prefer this over that any day.”

God damn Ignis’ sunglasses. Galo can’t tell what the hell is going on in his head.

“I can understand that,” he says. “Just try to believe that they mean the best. They’re saying the same thing I’m saying. They’re proud. And they’re grateful.”

Okay, Galo really has to leave now. 

He doesn’t know when this started. Praise used to make him beam, swell up with joy and pride. He’d look around to see who heard it. Galo’s greatest fantasy, sexual or otherwise, was being praised in public. But these days-

He thanks Ignis one more time and opens the door. He takes a step outside and immediately books it toward the front exit. He has to get home. Now.

“That was nice of him.”

Lio must have heard. But his voice is on a frequency that Galo can’t process. It’s because of Kray. He knows it, deep down, that he can’t handle this because of Kray. It’s all because of Kray.

That was his dream. He actually got it, too. The day he arrested Lio. Kray praised him on national television and Galo, at the time, was blissfully ignorant of _ everything. _ He didn’t know Kray was killing the Burnish or that he had plans to kill _ him, _too. Galo has always considered the day he caught the Mad Burnish to be the day his dream came true because it was the day he did something worth praise from Kray Foresight, his hero.

But maybe it was the day his dream came true because that was when he met Lio.

It’s not that he ever had a fantasy about Lio. Or even a mysterious figure that Lio filled the role of. He never thought about meeting anyone. He never worried about soulmates or anything. He had Aina, he had Ignis, he had the Burning Rescue. He thought he had Kray. He was fine. He felt fulfilled. He didn’t know there was a hole inside of him. He didn’t know something was missing until he found it.

“Let’s go.”

He takes a deep breath as he and Lio turn out of the Burning Rescue headquarters and onto the sidewalk. It’s fine. Calm down, Galo. Ignis was just saying something nice. It’s not something to have a panic attack over. Especially not with Lio right here.

Galo has never had a real panic attack. He doesn’t know what it feels like. He just knows that his heart is only just starting to slow and he rubs his palms against his pants to get the sweat off them. He rubs the back of his neck, too. In fact, he kind of needs a shower. His body is ice cold but he’s sweating. That’s only happened once before and it was when Kray locked him in a cage.

He’s fine. Everything is fine. Ignis is proud of him. That’s all it is. Don’t. _ Don’t _ blow this up into something it’s not. _ Don’t _do with Ignis what you did with Kray, Galo tells himself. There’s no need to make a father figure out of him.

Galo has a father. He tries to remind himself of that.

“Don’t make it into something it isn’t.”

Lio knows Galo so fucking well. Galo licks his lips and looks at his friend.

“What?”

“You’re panicking,” he says. “It’s fine. You don’t need to. Just don’t get attached. Don’t apply meaning where there isn’t any.”

"Huh?"

"We all have those things we do no matter how many times we realize they're not worth it," Lio says. "For you it might be prescribing meaning to a person based on hearing something nice about yourself. But it's straightforward, what he said. Don't make it mean more than it does."

Something about that is infuriating, no matter how right he is. 

“Ignis is my boss,” he says finally. “You’re supposed to get excited when you’re praised at work.” He realizes he’s trying to convince himself of this just as much as he is Lio. Lio shrugs.

“As long as that’s all it is.”

“What do you know?” Galo asks, venom in his voice. Lio sighs and his head turns to him quickly. “Maybe the meaning that isn’t there is between us.”

“Whoa,” Lio says quietly. Galo realizes now he overstepped, but he can’t really take it back. “I thought we were soulmates.”

“I did too,” Galo tells him, growing angrier by the second. He’s not sure _ why _he’s so furious, and he grabs at his hair in despair. “Maybe we’re not.”

“We’re not soulmates anymore because I said something that you don’t like?” Lio asks. Galo knows he’s being unfair but he doesn’t really care. He’s having a hard time. And Lio is supposed to be there for him.

“Fine, but soulmates can still get mad at each other sometimes! This is my street!”

And with that, Galo leaves. He stomps away, down the sidewalk that forks off between his place and Lio’s. Lio doesn’t say anything or stop him. Of course he doesn’t. That’s how Lio is.

Galo always figured Gueira and Meis would leave. He assumed they’d want to live together at some point. He really didn’t count on Lio going, though. Especially to just end up living alone, too. Why didn’t he stay? Why didn’t he want to be with Galo? He thinks about this a lot when he leaves Lio’s side at the end of the day. His walk home is always littered with insecurities and curiosities. Not a single part of him doubts Lio. He doesn’t worry that Lio doesn’t like him. That’s what’s so confusing about it.

Why wouldn’t he want to stay with him?

But he wants to give Lio his space. They’re paired together so much and Lio needs to be able to breathe or he might get sick of him. Galo can’t really imagine himself getting sick of Lio, though, despite moments like these. They sit together in complete silence all the time. They don’t need to speak constantly just to hang out. They used to occupy the same apartment without even being in the same room and Galo just felt _ better. _ Something just made him feel _ good _knowing that Lio was there. Even now.

Galo’s breath hitches. It does that every now and then. Some days it’s easy but other days this second fork in the road is really difficult to ignore. Go straight. Go home. There’s nothing to the right and the only thing to the left is the prison. Go straight. Go home. There’s nothing for you at the prison, Galo Thymos. That’s what Lio said. Let him rot. That’s what he said. There’s no such thing as closure in this situation; there’s no redemption and no apology great enough that can mend anything. _ He wanted to _ kill _ you, _ Lio reminded him. _ He wanted you dead, Galo. When you were too strong for that, he imprisoned you, left you to die torturously in a molten cage. He had to resort to clipping your wings because otherwise you’d fly too far. _

But Galo knows all this. Hearing it again doesn’t really help. It can’t be hammered home any more than it already is. It still doesn’t stop him from hesitating at the crosswalk. It doesn’t stop him from staring at the gravel while everyone else walks around him, ramming him with their shoulders and shouting at him to get out of the way.

Plus, what does Lio know? He likes to act like he understands Galo so intimately but he doesn’t. They can’t know each other that well; they only met a few months ago. So Lio can say whatever he wants. It doesn’t mean Galo can’t make his own choices. He can do whatever he wants. If he wants to talk to Kray, he can talk to Kray.

Galo goes straight. He goes home.


	3. research

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He’s never thought that hard about Lio’s lips. It’s kind of weird to think about your best friend’s lips like that. It’s kind of weird to have such a vivid memory of them. Such a strong and intense knowledge that they’re softer than they look.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this story was originally 12 chapters and then i realized i wanted to condense it into 6-7 and put a bunch of chapters together. i worked hard to make sure it was seamless but if there's something weird and something feels strange... i must have missed something and that's why. you can let me know if you want or just ignore it and have at it

The fire wasn’t really that bad. Or maybe it was and Galo has strange expectations. Burnish flames are different from other ones and “normal fires” weren’t really his specialty. But to keep busy, Burning Rescue has been helping particularly large fires lately - specifically ones that spread to other buildings. This one was in the heart of the city, so Burning Rescue showed up and that included Galo.

But he wasn’t really needed. That’s what’s been weighing on him so much lately: is he even necessary anymore? The matoi isn’t used against normal flames, not the one that Galo has, anyway. Lucia can invent no matter what the parameters are. She’s useful. But Galo is just a fighter. A _ fire _fighter, sure, but…

Galo realizes something while standing there that day. Idling out on the sidewalk, staring at the building, watching other firefighters file out. It’s been hours but things are wrapping up. No one died. No one even really got injured. There were wildly massive flames and it spanned three office buildings. But nothing really _ happened. _

That’s supposed to be a good thing. And that’s what Galo realizes, with a pit in his stomach: he misses the Burnish. Sometimes he wants to curse the Promare for leaving. Part of him hates that everything changed, even if it is for the better. No one needs him now. And it’s not about the theatrics of heroism. It’s not about the attention people lavished on him. He gets attention for being a hero every day.

It’s that he can’t be a hero _ever again_. He isn’t necessary. He was trained to fight the Burnish. And now Lio has to use the knobs on the stove to turn it on just like everyone else. Gueira learned that he had to use one of those long lighters to get to a candle deep in a holder. Meis has to fight with the wood in the fireplace now to get warm. The Burnish don’t exist. Which makes Galo obsolete.

“What’s wrong?”

Aina’s voice startles him. Galo jumps but she doesn’t apologize. 

“You scared me.”

“You look really troubled,” she says, ignoring him.

“I’m not.”

“You want me to leave you alone, then?”

Galo considers it.

“...No.”

“Then tell me what’s wrong.”

Aina was right the other day. They haven’t really talked since the end of the world. Maybe once or twice, but very rarely have they had serious conversations. The energy Galo has for those have been reserved for Lio and he realizes he doesn’t want to leave Aina behind. He never meant to do that, but maybe that’s what he’s been doing.

He puts his head in his hands and closes his eyes for a moment.

“Should it be easier for me to hate Kray?”

Aina is silent for a long while.

“I don’t know,” she says. “Honestly, I don’t know how to answer that. Do you hate him?”

“Yes.”

“Then what does it matter if that’s easy or not?” she asks. “Is it anyone else’s business what you struggle with as long as you do the right thing in the end?”

“I don’t like… I don’t like for Lio to think that I struggle with it.”

She’s silent again.

“Aina?”

“I think Lio has his own way of dealing with his feelings,” she says stiffly. “I don’t think he’d judge you for it.”

Galo is trying to decipher her tone. It’s like she’s angry but not with him.

“I don’t want to end up like that again,” Galo says, his voice breaking. “With some hero who isn’t heroic.”

Aina sighs. It sounds sympathetic, or at least as sympathetic as a sigh can be.

“All we can do is learn from what happens to us,” she says. “We make mistakes, we don’t do it again. Or maybe we do because we can’t help it. But we try not to.”

It clicks just then. Aina isn’t talking about Galo or Lio or even herself. Her sister is in the middle of her own battle, having been the lead scientist in the plot to destroy the world. She defected of course, but legally, she’s accountable. Aina is doing her best to support her while still accepting that what she did was deplorable. Aina is going calm. Aina _ has _to go calm.

Galo also remembers: Lio isn’t Aina’s biggest fan because of that.

“How’s… everything with you?” Galo asks suddenly, hesitant to say Heris’s name. He finally looks up and Aina is staring at the ground, one hand balled into a fist.

“It’s hard,” she admits. “There are some mistakes you just… You wonder if someone can make them. You wonder if deep down, they aren’t who you thought they were. Because no one makes evil mistakes. You have to be evil to do evil. That’s not a mistake.”

Galo is quiet. He doesn’t know how to help this situation. He can’t fix things for Aina. All he can do is stand there like a lump and listen.

“I know it’s hard,” he says. “I wish I had something better to say.”

“It’s fine,” Aina says, shaking her head. “We haven’t gotten to talk in so long.” She turns to him with a smile. “It’s nice to talk to you again.”

“It is,” he agrees. 

“And you’re going to be fine,” she tells him. “What’s most important for you right now is to differentiate between what was a mistake and what you couldn’t have helped. Because you can’t beat yourself up over things you couldn’t help. You couldn’t know. You couldn’t stop those things. Those aren’t your fault.”

Galo nods. He takes a deep breath and looks at the floor again.

“Do you think I’m dumb enough to do that again?” 

They both know what he means: is he stupid enough to fall for the hero fantasy again? Aina surprises him when she laughs a little.

“Not even Galo Thymos is dumb enough to do that again.”

Galo laughs, too.

“Thanks,” he says. “That means a lot.”

“You’re not an idiot, Galo,” she tells him. “I mean, you’re an idiot. But you’re not an _ idiot.” _

It actually does mean a lot. Galo knows he’s the dumbest firefighter there is. But as long as he’s not an idiot, he supposes that’s fine.

“And I guess it’s my cue to leave,” Aina says with a hint of _ something _in her voice. Galo looks over and sees Lio heading towards them. He stiffens a bit. Aina doesn’t know they’re in a bit of a fight. She just sees him coming and takes her leave.

Lio approaches. He doesn’t give Aina a second glance. He has something in his hands.

“What are you doing?”

“Giving you a shock blanket.”

And then he does. He wraps a small blanket around Galo’s shoulders. It hardly reaches his mid-back.

“I’m not in shock.”

“You look like you are.”

Lio is right. Galo is in shock at the realization he had earlier. He’s standing here, in shock that he’s become redundant, and Lio can tell.

“I’m fine.”

“Everyone is always shocked to be in my presence,” Lio tells him. “Are you okay?”

“I didn’t even do anything,” Galo grunts, ignoring his initial joke despite how charming he finds it. If he weren’t still irritated with him for the day before, he’d have laughed. “I don’t need a shock blanket. I was useless.”

He isn’t looking at Lio so he doesn’t know what his face looks like but he doesn’t speak for a few seconds.

“That doesn’t sound right.”

“What?”

“You calling yourself useless. That doesn’t sound right to me. Your voice saying those words. That’s like seeing a dog walk on its hind legs.”

“What?”

“It’s uncanny,” Lio clarifies. “I don’t like it. Don’t say it again.”

Galo sighs. 

“I’m not fishing for comfort,” he says. “I’m trying to figure out how to be useful again. For real.”

Lio takes another few moments. He looks at the building and then up to Galo, who can’t bring himself to return his gaze. He talks to Lio about his feelings more than anyone else, but sometimes he just wants to be in a bad mood.

“I always forget how dangerous this job really is because you do it without breaking a sweat.”

“I don’t know why I still do it,” Galo says. He’s pretty sure Lio had more to say, but he had to interrupt. “I don’t know if I ever wanted to do it. I thought I loved it but maybe that’s just because Kray had me believing he trusted me with it. I just wanted to protect people.”

“I know you do. That’s why I keep you around.”

Galo finally looks over at him. That’s a confusing thing to say. The words are a little mean but his tone is warm and sincere. It’s the perfect Lio Fotia joke. Serious and kind of nice. But worded in a way that protects him from any liability in terms of _ feelings. _

“What?”

Lio isn’t smiling when Galo looks down at him. But they lock eyes nonetheless.

“You’re a good person, Galo Thymos. In all senses of the word.”

Confusion washes over his body again. Galo isn’t confused but his body is. It doesn’t know how to process what he feels when Lio praises him. He nearly had a panic attack when Ignis did it, which is new and frustrating. It’s not that he doesn’t believe Ignis. It’s that he worries praise will cause him to make a bad decision like it did before. Praise Galo Thymos and he’ll follow you blindly.

But Lio is different.

“What do you mean?”

“People don’t use words like ‘nice’ or ‘good’ because they’re too general and don’t really mean anything. But ‘good’ does mean something.”

“What does it mean?”

“It means you’re the kind of person everyone should aspire to.”

Galo looks back at the building with a lump in his throat. That might be the greatest praise he’s ever gotten and Lio just said it like it was nothing. Galo can’t respond.

“I’m sorry that I upset you yesterday.”

Galo breathes. Apologies are apparently as hard as praise.

“You didn’t.”

“I know I did,” Lio says quietly. “It was really rude of me to imply what I did.” He pauses. “You know I don’t think you’re stupid.”

Galo does know that. When people get serious, they always tell Galo that. He doesn’t always believe them. Lio is the only one who does it when things are fine.

Fine. Another word that doesn’t have much meaning anymore.

“I know.”

“I understand if you’re mad at me,” Lio says. “But you didn’t do anything wrong. When we met, I mean. You always did what you thought was right. And when you found out what you were doing might not be right, you tried to fix it. That’s what being ‘good’ is.”

Galo isn’t going to cry but he’s definitely feeling some emotions right now.

“I’m not mad at you,” Galo tells him. Then he turns and smiles. “Anymore.”

“All it takes is a little sucking up?” 

“You were just sucking up?”

Lio smiles back.

“No,” he says. “I meant it.”

He’s like a cat when he paws at Galo’s arm. Galo looks down and he’s holding out his other hand. It’s curled into a fist. He’s asking if he’s forgiven. If Galo blows him off, the ball is in his court. Lio will leave him alone until he decides to forgive him.

Galo bumps it. 

\------

“So it’s not a baby chicken?”

“No.”

“How are they so small then?”

“They’re just small chickens that don’t fly.”

Galo pulls his head back and raises one eyebrow at Lio. If he didn’t know better, he’d say Lio was fucking with him but he knows that he wouldn’t do that.

“And the drumstick is two parts?”

“They rip another part off it before they cook it and throw it out.”

“That’s so wasteful.”

“It is.”

Galo looks down at his plate. The whole team went out for a meal after their shifts ended but he feels a little bad now. How many chickens died for forty-five wings? 

“So this is ninety chickens?” he asks, pointing at his plate. Lio looks down and then up at him again.

“Think about that harder.”

When Lio tells him to think about something harder, it usually means he said something dumb. He does think about it harder.

“No, it’s like… what’s half of forty-five?”

“Twenty… two? And a half. But each chicken gives four pieces so it’s actually more like eleven.”

“I just ate eleven chickens?!”

“Well, not whole chickens,” he says. “Just their wings.”

“I feel like I should go vegetarian.”

“Yeah?”

“I feel bad eating animals,” Galo says miserably. 

“Wanna switch to beans and tofu?”

“Huh?”

“That’s how you get protein if you’re vegetarian,” Lio tells him. “And nuts. It was actually a pretty sustainable diet when I didn’t know where my next meal was coming from. Heating cans up over the fire was easy. So was finding plants and roasting them. Or eating them raw. We stole from a lot of gardens, to be honest.”

“Well, I don’t need to steal vegetables,” Galo says. “I can buy them. I just don’t know if I could actually give up pepperoni.”

“Maybe you can be a vegetarian but with one pepperoni pizza a month.”

“Once a month?!” Galo cries. “Ugh. I hate being vegetarian.”

Lio laughs but Galo doesn’t know why. This is a real crisis. Lio must be used to the vegetable stuff because he always orders salads. Sometimes he gets chicken on it but Galo wonders how he sustains himself on a single salad.

“Is this why you’re so skinny?” he asks, pointing at the lettuce left on Lio’s plate. “Because all you eat is salad?”

“That’s not all I eat.”

“Why do you always get salads, then?”

“Because I like croutons and dressing,” Lio says without looking up. “It’s not about the health benefits.”

“Those are the fattiest parts of the salad.”

“Exactly. I don’t care.”

“Then how are you so skinny?”

“Good metabolism.”

Galo sighs and looks at his plate of bones again. He doesn’t understand metabolism. Well, he does, but he doesn’t get why it’s always the reason people are skinny. Aina says it, too. Does he have good metabolism?

“What about me? Do I have good metabolism?”

“I don’t know,” Lio shrugs, looking over and studying his body. “You do so much lifting and physical stuff that the stuff you eat turns to muscle. That’s why you’re so ripped even though you have a tiny waist.”

“What?”

“Your waist is tiny,” he repeats. “I mean, it’s bigger than mine, but proportionally to your body, it’s thin.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

Lio doesn’t answer right away. 

“I mean, it’s fine,” he stammers. “It looks fine. It’s just if you’re into that kind of thing.”

“What do you mean?”

“Some people are attracted to that body type.”

“Oh,” Galo says. Lio means physically attracted. Galo has never given a whole lot of thought to what he finds physically attractive. He’s always thought Aina was beautiful, but has only ever really seen her as a friend. He unfortunately always thought Kray was handsome too, but he definitely only saw him as a superior. He stopped hooking up with people after school and training because he just didn’t have the time. He _ wasn’t _going to hook up with anyone in Burning Rescue and ruin the team, so the last person he really had sex with was about four years ago. He was pretty skinny, like Lio. But much taller. “What kind of body type are you attracted to?”

“What?”

“What kind of body type are you attracted to?”

“I heard what you said, it’s just, why did you ask it?”

“Because I don’t know what I’m attracted to.”

“Well, this isn’t a multiple choice test. You can’t copy my answer. It’s a gut thing.”

“I guess I don’t really have a type,” Galo says. 

“More attracted to people’s personalities?”

Galo thinks that over. Yes, he’s _ more _ attracted to personalities. But not _ only _ personalities. He definitely finds people physically attractive in a sexual way. Maybe how they treat him takes precedence over that, but he _ would _kiss someone who looked like Lio.

“I guess, but I find certain people attractive.”

“Like who?”

“No one specific,” he shrugs. “Just like, people I see on the street. Aina is really pretty but getting with your teammate is complicated. I don’t want to ruin the team. But if I met someone else who looked like her, I would find them attractive.” Galo hums for a moment. “Plus, I can’t date Aina anyway. She’s just a friend.”

“Yeah?”

“I think you should be friends with your partner,” Galo says. “But there are also people who you just don’t feel that way about. That’s Aina.”

This is all very awkward considering Aina is at the end of the table. She’s engaged in a different conversation with everyone else, but she’s still there and Galo worries she might hear her name. Then Galo notices that Lio is boring a hole into his plate he’s staring at it so hard. He’s pushing wilted leaves around with his fork idly. Something is on his mind.

“I guess you feel that way about Gueira and Meis, huh?” Galo asks. Lio is quiet.

“I guess,” he says finally. “You really don’t feel romantically for Aina?”

It hits Galo just then: Lio doesn’t really like Aina. He always forgets that. He forgets that two of the most important people in his life have a hard time getting along. But Lio doesn’t feel the same way about Heris that he does Kray. He’s trying to forgive her. But she caused a lot of Burnish suffering at Kray’s behest and it’s hard for him to just get over that. In turn, he has a hard time dealing with Aina knowing that she forgives her. 

He feels like he should defend her. But Lio asked a benign question and Galo can’t really lie about it.

“I never have,” he shrugs. “You know how you needed Gueira and Meis? You need that friendship you can count on and won’t screw up with romance? That’s Aina for me.”

“I needed them because we had a political uprising to bring,” Lio points out with a small smile on his face. He finally puts his elbow on the table and rests his head against it, looking Galo in the eye. “They were my partners in crime. Is that Aina to you?”

“Well, we’re not criminals,” Galo grins. “She’s just my teammate.”

“Whereas I’m your _ soul_mate.”

“Exactly.”

“So do you find me attractive?”

Galo would spit out a drink if he had anything in his mouth.

“What?!”

“We’re already soulmates,” he says. “I’m just wondering. Do you find me attractive?”

Galo knows he’s joking around but for some reason he can’t bring himself to say no. Not only would that be rude, but it would be a lie. Lio is extremely attractive. If he wasn’t so important to him, Galo might actually hook up with him.

“Sure,” he says. “Yeah. Yeah I think you’re attractive.”

Lio isn’t smiling but he is still looking Galo in the eye. He’s really expressionless. 

“I think you’re attractive too, Galo Thymos.”

“Of course you do!” Galo says. “That’s not a surprise.”

“Galo-”

“You two get into these private little conversations every time we go out!” Lucia’s voice cuts through whatever Lio was about to say. “Even when we’re talking about something important.”

Galo is taken aback. 

“Alright,” he says. “Gosh. Jump down my throat, I guess.”

“I’m just saying,” Lucia states. “We’re talking about the state of Burning Rescue and what are you two talking about?”

Lio finally turns around to face her and Galo knows exactly the look he’s giving her: that one that’s narrow pupils, thin lips, creased brow. It’s supposed to be frightening but Galo just thinks it’s cute. He just prays Lio doesn’t actually reveal what they were talking about.

“None of your business.”

“Wow,” Lucia drawls. “Trying to intimidate me?”

“I’m just saying,” he mocks. 

Lio and Lucia actually get along really well. It’s probably because they’re both a little explosive but in a very quiet way. Lucia likes that Lio stands up for himself and Lio likes that Lucia does the same. He also respects her genius. Lucia laughs at Lio’s voice, and then turns back to Remi to say something about the chemistry of fire and copper that Galo wouldn’t understand if he tried. Lio doesn’t say much for the rest of the meal, which, thankfully, ends pretty quickly after that anyway.

“You okay?” Galo asks on the way out. “You got really quiet.”

“I’m fine. Just got really tired.”

“They can wear me out, too,” Galo says. They stop just outside the front door. Galo doesn’t really want to leave. He finds himself feeling this way so often with Lio. He hates saying goodbye. “You probably want to get home and take a nap?”

“Probably. What are you gonna do?”

“I have some firecrackers,” he says. “I always wanted to see what would happen if you set them off in an enclosed space.”

Lio blinks.

“I think you can guess what would happen if you did that.”

“You think?”

“I highly suggest not testing out that idea,” he says. “No matter what your hypothesis is.”

Galo’s hypothesis is that it’s strange for him to feel this way. To feel so empty when Lio leaves. He shouldn’t feel like this about another person. He shouldn’t _ need _someone the way he feels he needs Lio. But it’s a little confusing. He’s never felt this way before. 

“Okay,” Galo says in defeat. “Then I guess I’ll find something else to experiment with.”

“I hesitate to let you do that alone.”

“Then come over and do it with me.”

“I’m really tired.”

“Then come over and take a nap.”

Lio shifts uncomfortably. Galo picks up on it.

“I like my bed.”

“Sorry,” Galo says. “Did I say something wrong?”

“No,” Lio says quickly. “You didn’t. I just… prefer sleeping in my own bed.”

Galo doesn’t suggest coming over and taking a nap at Lio’s place with him. He invites himself over all the time but Lio clearly wants to be alone. Galo respects that. He doesn’t particularly _ like _ it right now, but he respects it.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow,” he says. Lio doesn’t say bye right away and Galo realizes he’s been hesitating in his responses a lot lately. But he does eventually pat Galo on the back and turn the opposite way, heading for his place. Galo frowns and turns toward his. 

There’s some feeling that he can’t quite pinpoint. Something about Lio. It’s like a gratitude but not _ to _ him as much as _ for _him. He’s so grateful that Lio exists. They met as adversaries so it’s hard for Galo to claim it was friends at first sight but he definitely felt an immediate kinship with him after the night in the cave. And when he ended up in the cell - Lio didn’t know how close he felt to him. And, Galo thought, he never would, because he’d die in that prison. But he’s still never really told Lio about that. About that strange feeling that welled up inside of him.

And he’s not going to tell him about this one, either. They’re pretty honest and open with each other but he knows Lio hasn’t told him _ everything. _ He’s got family in Europe somewhere, the U.K., Galo thinks, but ended up in Detroit somehow, and then Promepolis when he figured out what Kray Foresight was doing. But he’s never told Galo much about his family or upbringing, though Meis once implied he came from money. That threw Galo for a loop. He decisively does _ not _have experience with being upper class. 

Then again, he’s not sure what happened to Lio to cause him to leave home in the first place. Was it Kray? Was it the Burnish? Or is there an underlying reason? Something about Lio’s family that Galo doesn’t know?

Lio doesn’t know everything about Galo, either. Galo was open with the fact that he’s not particularly close to his family - he only had his mom and dad anyway - and they don’t particularly mind that. Lio had frowned at that and double checked he’d heard right. Galo’s parents don’t care that they don’t talk to their son anymore? Galo appreciated how strange that was to Lio, but he didn’t know how to explain that he was just as apathetic as they were. 

They weren’t that bad. They just weren’t. They weren’t anything. They were never around and when they were, Galo didn’t exactly want them to be. 

But it doesn’t matter now. He has his own family. He still doesn’t know where Lio fits into it, but he’ll figure it out. Just as soon as he figures out these feelings about Lio, he’ll figure out where he goes. Galo doesn’t know why he’s so fixated on this faux family tree, but he really needs it. He needs to feel close to _ someone. _Because deep down, that’s what he wants the most. He knows it, but he can barely access it. He can barely bring himself to admit that all he wants is someone he understands implicitly. That sort of thing takes time. That’s what he wants. Someone who wants to spend so much time with him that they come to know each other in a way no one else does. And Lio - they already come so easily to each other. He has a good jumping off point with him.

But he supposes he’s meant to marry whoever he feels that way with. It also occurs to him that whoever he does end up marrying will have to contend with Lio. They have to not mind that they aren’t Galo’s soulmate - or, at least, not his only one. He’s never given marriage much thought. He’s not that old and he doesn’t have anyone breathing down his neck to pressure him. That’s a real toughie. Who can he marry that doesn’t mind Lio Fotia being by his side at all times?

And who will Lio find to marry?

The thought makes him bristle and he doesn’t know why. He doesn’t want anyone to take Lio from him and he’s sure that isn’t healthy so he brushes it aside quickly. Of course Lio should be allowed to forge new relationships. They’ll always be soulmates, even if they start to drift a little some day.

Oh. The thought makes Galo’s heart ache. Literally. Physically. His chest tightens and has to breathe in deep and shake his head as if to dislodge the thought. The idea that he could ever _ lose _Lio is really Earth-shattering. Galo feels like his entire world would implode if he lost Lio, and that’s when he realizes: he’s doing it again.

He doesn’t hold Lio in the same regard that he held Kray, but to feel like his life would be over without him? That must be placing far too much value on a single person. Which isn’t fair to Lio, either. He can’t treat him like he’s dependent on him to stay put together. That isn’t Lio’s responsibility, even if he _ is _his soulmate.

But it doesn’t really matter. Galo can tell himself that all he wants. He can beat himself up over it every day. It doesn’t change the fact that Galo feels so strongly about Lio that he would break down if he lost him. He just wishes he knew what that feeling was called. 

It’s probably better to focus on the positives, anyway. The negatives are hypothetical. They’re just bad concepts that don’t need to exist. The good things are actually here and they’re here right now. Lio exists. And he likes Galo. That’s all that matters. Galo needs to let the rest just slide off his shoulders. Stop overthinking it. Be dumb. Be the world’s number one idiot firefighter. Don’t think about it at all.

When he comes to the fork in the road, he looks down the left turn towards the prison. Lio would hate that he hesitates, so he crosses the street immediately and goes home.

\------

It’s been particularly hard for Galo to keep his eyes open today. He prays nothing serious happens, he won’t be able to stay awake for it. Of course, adrenaline is a hell of a thing so he’d probably wake up. But right now he’s bored and trying to stay awake at the table outside Ignis’s office. No one was bothering him. Until now.

“Ga-alo-o.”

Galo doesn’t open his eyes.

_ “Ga-a-a-a-lo.” _

Lucia’s voice can be hilariously nasally. But it’s not exactly hilarious right now; it’s just annoying.

“Lucia-a-a-a-a,” Galo answers. “Leave me alo-o-one, I’m trying to sle-e-e-p.”

“Why are you sleeping out here?” she asks. “Lio told me to tell you he’s looking for you.”

Galo opens his eyes.

“What?”

“Lio is looking for you,” she repeats. “He said to meet in the usual place and you’d know what that means.”

He sighs heavily. Not at the prospect of meeting Lio, just at the fact that that requires moving and he desperately wants to remain in his seat. The only place he wants to move to is the couch but he’s too tired to even do that.

“Alright,” he says tiredly. “Thanks.” He figures Lio is already there so there’s no way to have Lucia relay a message to him. Even the prospect of pulling out his phone makes him sleepy. 

“So where is it?”

“Huh?”

“Where is your special lover’s spot?”

You frown at Lucia and take that as a good cue to finally get out of here.

“Well now I’m definitely not telling you.”

Lucia has this evil grin that has never been matched by anyone else Galo has ever known. Not even Kray. She cackles as he rises from his seat slowly and walks away. 

“And now I’m going to throw you off!” Galo shouts, turning around to yell at her. “Don’t watch me! Stop!”

“You think I want to interrupt your lover’s time?”

“Stop calling us that!”

“Are you two in fourth grade?” comes Ignis’s booming voice from his office. Galo looks over in surprise but shuts up. Lucia does the same but the grin on her face remains as she turns around and goes back to the other corner of the room with Remi and Varys. Galo turns around just in time to stop himself from running right into Aina.

“Whoa,” he says as he puts his hands up in defense. He grabs her by the shoulders and then steadies himself, letting go as soon as he can. She was just standing there like she wanted him to run into her. “Sorry?”

“It’s fine,” she says. “You’re really tired today.”

“Yeah,” he admits. “I didn’t sleep well last night.”

“Why not?”

He isn’t sure why. He was tossing and turning until around four a.m. He finally fell asleep just to have to wake up three hours later. His thoughts were racing, which isn’t usual for him. He’s supposed to be an idiot, shouldn’t his thoughts be more like… crawling?

“I don’t know,” he says. “I was just having a hard time.”

He also doesn’t want her to know he was thinking about Lio.

“I haven’t been sleeping well lately either,” she says. “But that’s been more of a constant.”

Galo nods. He can imagine. She’s pretty stressed about her sister and Galo doesn’t know how she handles the anxiety and worry she must be going through daily.

“How is… everything?”

She sighs and looks towards the floor. He can tell she’s trying to gather her thoughts and think of what to say. It takes her a while but Galo is silent until she’s ready. He doesn’t have much to say, anyway.

“It doesn’t look good,” she finally says, looking up and meeting his gaze. “She doesn’t try to defend herself. Which is good in that she knows she… did more than mess up. I’m glad she doesn’t try to rationalize things. But it’s also bad because then other people can’t see what really happened. They think she just realized things were going south and jumped ship. I know that’s not what happened.”

“It’s not,” Galo assures her. “I know it’s not.”

“I know it too, but anyone who wasn’t there…”

“They just can’t understand,” Galo says. “I’ve tried to tell people that but they don’t really get it.”

“We should all be in therapy.”

Galo laughs a little. She’s not wrong. He has nothing against the idea, either. But it never really came up and he’s always been pretty good at handling his emotions. Until lately, at least.

“Maybe,” he says. “She’s the one who ruined Kray’s plan in the end. She was ready to sacrifice herself. You don’t do that when you’re feeling cornered, you do that when you really believe in something.”

Aina nods slightly and her eyes travel slowly down to the floor. Galo leans sideways a bit to try to find her eyes again.

“I guess.”

“I know some people may still blame her but she was crucial.”

“‘Some people?’” she asks, lifting her head again, a small smile on her face. But it’s not genuine. “You mean Lio. Lio hates her. And by extension me.”

Galo didn’t really mean it that way, but she’s right. He isn’t sure what else to say at this point, especially seeing as he’s on his way to meet that exact man right now. He looks away awkwardly and rubs the back of his head with his palm.

“He doesn’t hate you.”

“He doesn’t _ like _me.”

“I know Lio,” Galo says. “He’s been through a lot.”

“I never said I’d blame him for it,” Aina says. “But it does get in the way. There’s no reason to deny that, either.”

“Get in the way of what?”

“Everything,” Aina shrugs. “Don’t you feel it driving a wedge between us?”

“No,” Galo says quickly, sternly. He feels very strongly that someone as important to him as Lio wouldn’t get in the way of someone as important to him as Aina. “I don’t feel that. I feel that things are really complicated and everyone has it hard. And we all did a lot and it wasn’t fair and… I don’t know.” Galo is rambling a bit now but he’s just trying to insist that nothing will get in the way of their friendship. “I have to go.”

“Meet Lio?”

Galo doesn’t answer, which is enough for Aina. She bites down on her bottom lip for a moment and then her eyes dart away. She leaves, walking past Galo daintily, as if she’s walking on eggshells. It doesn’t put Galo in a good mood. He hates knowing Aina feels like she can’t count on him. She has to deal with everything going on with her sister and doesn’t even feel like Galo will be there for her? Galo can’t stand that. He stomps off toward the stairwell angrily. Not at Aina. Not at all. And not at Lio, either. At least, not by the time he sees his face on the rooftop.

It’s like Lio makes things melt away. Galo’s always heard about that but he’s never felt it. He’s never known a person to make him lighter. He’s never had a person in his life who made his problems go away. Aina has always made him feel better. But Lio makes him feel…

“You need something?”

“No,” Lio shrugs with a smile. “I just felt like I blew you off yesterday.”

“You did?”

“You wanted to hang out and I was lame and took a nap instead,” Lio shrugs. “I brought some soda and mints so you can make it blow up if you want.”

“Really?!” Galo asks excitedly. Lio knows that’s his favorite past-time. Lio nods and points behind him, towards a two-liter and several packets of candy. Galo doesn’t need to say another word. He rips opens up the mints and dumps some in his mouth, then makes quick work of twisting the top off the soda. He looks back at Lio who’s watching with great interest. It’s a matter of timing. He has to throw the mints in and back up in enough time to watch the geyser shoot up and not get all over him. He hesitates but then drops three mints in and runs back to Lio.

“What chemicals are at work here?” he asks as the soda explodes into the sky. Lio shrugs.

“I have no idea.”

“You don’t know what makes it do that?”

“I’m sure something in the mint makes the carbonation explode,” he shrugs. “I don’t know specifically.”

“Huh,” Galo says, turning back to the soda and watching it die down. “I thought you’d know.”

“Why?”

“You know everything.”

“I do?”

“Well,” Galo thinks it over. Usually he tells Lio something he’s thinking about and Lio encourages him to test his theory. To Galo, that always seemed like Lio knew more than he did but really, he’s just as interested as Galo is. When he thinks about it, no one’s ever really been as curious as him before - or at least, they don’t humor him as much. “I guess not. But you always want to know just as bad as I do.”

Lio is on his phone. He doesn’t answer for a few moments.

“‘The eruption is caused by a physical reaction, rather than any chemical reaction. The addition of the mints leads to the rapid nucleation of carbon dioxide gas bubbles precipitating out of solution…’ and then there’s some chemical equation here. It’s the carbon dioxide.”

“That’s the one we breathe out, right?” 

“Yeah.”

“Well, I love it,” Galo says. “That’s all I know.”

“I know you do,” Lio smiles. “You’re pretty simple, huh?”

“I like to think I am. Is that a bad thing?”

“No,” Lio says quickly. “Not at all.”

“Good.”

“Am I simple, too?”

“You come simple to me,” Galo grins. “That’s not a bad thing, either.”

Lio doesn’t answer but Galo sees him smile to himself. He turns away and walks a few steps toward the padding on the ground. He brought mats up here a few weeks ago so they could spar more easily but he’s also taken to laying on them when he’s tired. That’s what he does now; lies down and stares up at the sky. So Galo joins him. He takes up two mats while Lio really only needs half of one.

“Did you set those firecrackers off yesterday?” Lio asks. Galo laughs.

“I wasn’t really going to do that,” he says. “I’m not wasting firecrackers.”

“Why’d you say you were going to experiment, then?”

Galo swallows his tongue. He said it because he knew it would sound stupid and Lio would want to come over to make sure he didn’t do it. Galo feels bad about that. It’s like manipulation and he didn’t really think about it until now. Until Lio asked, he wasn’t aware that he never really planned on setting firecrackers off in an enclosed space. He just wanted Lio to come over. 

But he can’t tell him that.

“I was just… messing with you.”

“Ah,” Lio hums. “You know that doesn’t work with me.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t think you’re an idiot,” he says. “I thought there was some secret genius behind your idea. I thought maybe you had a grand hypothesis that you were going to try to prove right.”

“You did?”

“No,” Lio says bluntly. “I’m just messing with you now. You’re an idiot.”

Galo grins and looks up at the sky again. 

“Takes one to know one.”

“I should have left you in that cave,” Lio mutters. He says that a lot. It’s a joke, seeing as -

“You _ did _leave me in the cave,” Galo replies as usual. 

“You know, you always say that and it’s true, but you’ve never told me how you got out. I went back and you were gone.”

Galo perks up.

“You went back?”

“Of course.”

“I never knew that.”

“You thought I’d just leave you there to starve?”

“Yeah,” Galo shrugs. 

“The Burnish don’t kill people,” Lio says, and his voice is suddenly very grave. It sounds like it did the day they met. The day in the cave. “You know that.”

Galo hesitates. Of course he knows that. But he didn’t know Lio that well then. 

“Well, Aina came and got me.”

Lio pauses.

“Aina?”

“Yeah.”

“How did she know you were there?”

“She was with me beforehand,” Galo says. “We were at the frozen lake. I was dancing with her, I think. Or she tripped and I caught her. Then I saw your Burnish flames in the ice. And I went to find you.”

“You were dancing?”

“No, she tripped,” Galo says with a nod. “I don’t remember. I think she tripped. I was holding her and that was how I saw you. In the ice. The reflection in the ice.”

“Oh.”

“I told her to go get backup,” Galo says. “So… I guess I’m glad she didn’t make it back in time. Not that you wouldn’t have just broken out again if Burning Rescue managed to capture you.”

It’s really quiet for several seconds. Galo doesn’t know what else to say and just when he starts to feel awkward, Lio speaks softly:

“You and Aina are really close.”

Galo raises his eyebrows as he stares at the clouds. He puts his hands under his head and sighs. Maybe this is a good time to hint to Lio that he should give Aina another chance.

“Yeah!” he says happily. “Aina’s one of my best friends. She’s really important to me. As important as you are.”

“You ever start to be anything more than friends with her?”

If Galo had anything in his mouth, he would choke. What a bizarre and startling question. He actually moves his head out from under him and looks over at Lio.

“What?!” he cries. “No! Never!”

“Really?”

“Really!” Galo shouts. “I’d never date Aina.”

“Why? What’s wrong with her?”

“Nothing!” he says. “I’m just… Didn’t we talk about this yesterday? Aina is like Gueira and Meis. I’d never hook up with her but she means a lot. Don’t you understand that?”

“I understand it,” Lio says. “I’m just making sure that’s how you feel about her.”

“It is,” Galo insists. He relaxes a bit, going back to placing his hands under his head again and staring upwards once more. “Trust me, it is.”

“Hm.”

Galo doesn’t want to talk about this anymore. He loves Aina but he doesn’t _ love _Aina. Doesn’t Lio know boys and girls can just be friends? He isn’t the judgmental type. Galo would think he’d understand.

“So you came back to the cave?” he asks, the thought suddenly hitting him. “After you left me there?”

“Yeah.”

“You were going to save me?”

“I was going to knock you out again and untie you.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“You’re ruthless.”

“And I’d do it again.”

Galo laughs to himself and shakes his head. That day in the cave was… enlightening. That’s putting it mildly. Not only did he learn a lot about the Burnish, but he learned a lot about Kray, too. It’s a bittersweet memory. The day he finally understood Lio Fotia was a revelation; the day he finally understood Kray Foresight was a blight.

“I was so shocked when you kissed that girl,” he says. “You leaned in and I didn’t know what you were going to do.”

“It wasn’t a kiss.”

“I thought it was at the time.”

“You know it wasn’t a kiss,” he says. “You did it for me afterwards.”

Galo grins to himself and sits up. He twists his torso and looks at Lio, feigning shock and despair.

“I thought that was a kiss, too!”

Lio twists towards him.

“What?!”

“I’m just kidding!” Galo guffaws. Lio glares at him.

“No you’re not,” he mutters. “You’d love a chance to kiss me.”

He notices Lio is staring at his lips as his grin widens.

“If you needed it again, I’d be the first in line.”

“To save me or kiss me?”

Galo shrugs.

“Save you, but if you needed a kiss in order to be saved, that’s fine by me. Anything for my soulmate.”

Lio licks his own lips and looks up to meets Galo’s eyes.

“Your platonic soulmate,” he corrects. “Not the kind of soulmate you’d kiss.”

Galo throws his hands up in the air and rolls his eyes.

“Whatever you need to tell yourself.”

“So you don’t feel like we’re platonic?”

“Oh,” Galo says, his face falling into concern. Is Lio asking if he meant they’re romantic? Because he didn’t. “No, I do. I just meant… you know. Mouth to mouth when you’re a rescuer isn’t much of anything.”

“...Right.”

“If you needed to kiss me, you would, wouldn’t you?”

Galo thought it was an easy question, but there’s a sudden panic in Lio’s eyes. They dart away nervously and then back to Galo’s lips. He cocks his head to the side in wonderment.

“Yeah,” Lio says quickly. “Of course I would.” He starts to stand up. “I have to go.”

“What?”

“I need to go home,” he says, scrambling to grab his jacket from the ground a few feet away and heading towards the stairwell door. “I just - I forgot I was supposed to meet Gueira and Meis.”

“Oh,” Galo says. “Okay. Go ahead. I’ll see you tomorrow!”

Lio doesn’t say anything else as he exits gracelessly, stumbling over himself to get out. Galo laughs a little. It’s not like Lio to forget stuff like that. But Gueira and Meis are late to stuff all the time, so he’s sure it’s fine. He looks back up at the sky and stares at the cloud that looks a little like Lio’s hair. To be fair, a lot of clouds look like Lio’s hair. Lio’s hair is like a cloud. And his eyes are like the sky at sunset. His skin is like cream and his lips are like -

Galo brushes the thought away. ‘Cream’ was a little cliché and he couldn’t come up with anything for Lio’s lips. He’s never thought that hard about Lio’s lips. It’s kind of weird to think about your best friend’s lips like that. It’s kind of weird to have such a vivid memory of them. Such a strong and intense knowledge that they’re softer than they look. But like Lio said - it wasn’t a kiss. It was a life-saving procedure.

Galo is still thinking about them as he walks home. He’s so distracted he forgets that he can even turn left toward the prison. He just goes straight to his place, Lio’s lips on his mind the entire time.


	4. experiment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lio just looks really cute. Kind of like his ideal partner. If Galo could fall asleep next to someone who looked as cute as Lio does right now every night, he’d be pretty damn happy.

“If I put a DVD in upside down, do you think it’ll ruin it?”

He can’t see him, but he’s sure that Lio blinks in confusion.

“...Why would you do that?”

“I’m just wondering.” Galo places the disc delicately into the player upside down. “I think it would scratch it up.”

“Well, why don’t you test that hypothesis?”

Galo cocks his head to the side and considers it.

“Maybe with a DVD we aren’t about to watch,” he says, picking it up and putting it in the correct way. He pushes it into the console. “Can I make a DVD spin backwards?”

“What?”

“If I spin it backwards will it rewind the movie?”

“Galo, what?”

“I know you don’t have to rewind it like film, I just want to know what it does if it spins the other way.”

“I don’t know,” Lio shrugs. Galo presses play. “What do records do? They play backwards don’t they? But that’s vinyl.”

“I bet it doesn’t do anything.” Galo stands up and takes a seat on the couch. He’s excited. It’s just him and Lio, having a night to themselves at his place. “Anyway, I’m going to pay really close attention this time.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Galo nods confidently. “I’m going to understand it this time.”

“It’s really not that complicated.”

“It is!”

“It’s not,” Lio laughs. “They just build a fake vault and divert the security cameras to show that. Then they break into the real vault and steal all the money.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Galo says. “No one’s gonna be able to say Galo Thymos doesn’t understand casino heist movies after this.”

“Do people say that now?”

Galo waves his hand around in the air dismissively.

“Not in those words,” he says. “But they definitely think I’m dumb for not getting it.”

“Well, I’ll try to explain it as we go along,” Lio offers. “If you don’t understand what’s happening just pause it and I’ll tell you.”

And Lio does exactly that. Galo must pause at least six times but it’s mostly because he can’t follow who’s who. The cast is extensive but Galo can repeat the plot to Lio afterwards and that was his goal for the night. 

“Not that I approve of any of it,” Galo says. “They’re still criminals, no matter how cool.”

Lio rolls his eyes.

“How did I know you’d say that?”

“You know, you’re cool, but you were never really a criminal,” Galo reminds him. “That’s what _ you _say. So don’t back them up.”

“They’re not real.”

“I’m just saying.”

“They’re stealing money from a man who hoards his wealth that he made off the backs of weak and unhealthy people. He knows gambling is a vice for a lot of people but he doesn’t care. He cheats people who have serious issues out of money and he doesn’t do anything to stimulate the economy afterwards.”

“But he’s not breaking any laws.”

“Does that matter?”

Galo folds his arms. No. It doesn’t matter. Obviously. Galo knows that. But the fact remains that people are still _ stealing. _

“Even Robin Hood was a criminal,” Galo says.

“He was a vigilante.”

“He broke the law.”

“The law was wrong,” Lio tells him. “The law was made by the people in charge tailored to keeping power. They didn’t want anyone else to have as much money so they could overpower them. So they made laws that kept people oppressed.”

Galo leans over and brings his face close to Lio’s studying him carefully. Lio turns and flinches when he realizes how close Galo is.

“You always back up the evil-doers,” Galo says. Lio laughs and he’s so close that Galo can feel his breath on his lips. Galo doesn’t even really mean it. He technically agrees with Lio. But he can’t really help himself.

“Evil-doers? They’re stealing money, not killing people.”

Galo raises an eyebrow before pulling away. Lio seems a little flushed when he looks at him again. Galo realizes that that’s probably because Lio gets really stressed out by these conversations and suddenly Galo feels very bad about continuing it. They’re too much like reality. Too much of a mirror of what happened to them.

“You’re right,” he says. “The law is not an ultimate authority. Anyway, let’s put on the next one.”

“Really?”

Galo stands up and looks at Lio as he crosses the room to put in the second movie.

“Too tired?”

“A little,” Lio says. “I _ was _at Burning Rescue today.”

Galo notices he doesn’t say _ work. _ He doesn’t consider Burning Rescue to be a _ job _yet, even though he’s getting paid to do it. 

“I was too,” Galo says. “And I’m still ready to go.”

“Maybe I’ll catch a second wind,” Lio says, waving his hand at Galo to go ahead. “Put it in.”

But he’s falling asleep half an hour in. Galo notices him yawn once, then a second time a few minutes later, then a third time a couple minutes after that. He fights to stay awake. Galo is watching out of the corner of his eye and finally decides to have some mercy. He hands him a blanket and pauses the movie.

“You should stay the night,” he says. “You’re really exhausted.”

“I thought you got rid of your second bed?” Lio asks. “I can just go home,” he says, shaking his head to wake himself up and refusing the blanket. Galo shakes his head, too.

“I did, but you’re so sleepy,” Galo says. Lio always does this. He goes home at three, four, five a.m. and Galo never understands why. He has a bag of stuff with him. He has a toothbrush and sweatpants. He even has a change of clothes and his own washcloth. But he never ends up using it and Galo appreciates his preparedness but wishes he’d put it to use. “Just stay.”

Lio looks away. Then he takes the blanket and starts to tuck himself in on the couch. Galo tugs at the corner.

“No, no,” he says. “Just come to my bed.”

“What? I’m not taking your bed.”

“Why not?”

“It’s… your bed.”

“Well, I’ll use it, too.”

“What?!”

“It’s a king bed!” Galo shouts. “Just share it with me. We can even put the movie on in the bedroom and fall asleep to it.”

“I’m not good at falling asleep…” He trails off and Galo nods at him.

“Electronics in the bedroom don’t work for everyone,” he says. “I just think the couch is really uncomfortable. Just come share the bed and we’ll finish it in the morning.”

Galo stands up then so that Lio doesn’t have a chance to say no. Usually he would try to make Lio as comfortable as possible, but he’s convinced he knows best in this situation. Lio will not put him out. Lio will not impose. He pretends like he does - like he doesn’t care - but he does. He thinks he’s a burden and Galo won’t have that. He treks back to his bedroom and opens his closet, pulling out a few extra pillows and throwing them on the bed. 

“Come on!” he calls. 

Lio trudges back to him. He seems irritated.

“Look, how can you deny such fluffy pillows?” Galo asks as he points at the bed. Lio rolls his eyes but Galo can tell he’s stifling a smile.

He goes back to the front door and gets his bag. He uses the bathroom for a few minutes to brush his teeth and change his clothes. Galo changes too and when Lio walks back in in shorts and a t-shirt, Galo’s heart skips a beat. He’s not sure why. He just thinks -

Lio just looks really cute. Kind of like his ideal partner. If Galo could fall asleep next to someone who looked as cute as Lio does right now _ every _night, he’d be pretty damn happy.

“You don’t wear a shirt to bed?” Lio asks. 

“Nope.”

“Can you?”

“Why are you so shy?” Galo asks with a grin as he crawls into bed. “You see me without a shirt every day!”

Lio glares at him and walks to the other side of the bed. Galo swallows hard as he lifts the blanket delicately and climbs in. He never realized he felt so lonely; just watching Lio tuck himself in and turn to face him arrogantly makes Galo a little jealous of everyone else in the world who has someone to fall asleep next to at night.

“But do you have to be shirtless in bed? With your bro?”

“My soulmate,” Galo corrects him. “Our _ lips _have touched before, bro.”

“Yeah,” Lio says softly. His voice is so quiet but his face doesn’t change. He pauses. “You think they’ll ever touch again?”

Galo turns to Lio with a grin, propping his head up with his hand.

“You planning on dying again any time soon?”

Lio blinks.

“No.”

“Good!” Galo says. “Because I don’t want to lose you.”

Lio takes a deep breath. 

“Galo…”

“What?”

Lio licks his lips. He actually inches forward a bit and Galo cocks his head in curiosity. But then Lio just sighs and looks at the bed. He shakes his head.

“Put a shirt on.”

Galo grins wider.

“You can turn the light off,” he says. “Then you won’t be able to see anyway.”

Galo falls asleep almost instantaneously. And he’s a pretty heavy sleeper so when he wakes up in the morning to find that Lio isn’t there, he’s not surprised.

But when we realizes he’s actually gone - not at this apartment, not anywhere - he’s actually…

Incredibly sad. 

It makes him feel like it was some dirty, platonic one-night-stand. Lio must have thought it would be best to get out of the way before Galo awoke. So he could avoid awkwardly finishing the movie over brunch. Which, to Galo, sounds delightful. He’s not sure why Lio wouldn’t want to do that. He’s not sure why he’d leave. 

But Galo knows he’s at the Burning Rescue headquarters. So he goes there on his day off.

“Has anyone seen Lio?”

Remi and Varys are sitting around the table, mugs in their hands. Varys looks up but Remi keeps his eyes on his phone. Galo lifts his hands up, beckoning one of them to answer, even if it’s to say no.

“I think, uh…” Varys trails off for a moment. “I think he’s in the break room with Aina.”

That gives Galo pause.

“Aina?”

Varys shrugs and Remi finally looks up.

“Really?” he asks. Varys nods.

“I saw them go in together at least,” he says. “Maybe one of them left and I didn’t notice. I wasn’t really keeping tabs.” He looks at Galo pointedly. “But if they are still in there, maybe you should let them finish talking before you go in.”

Galo frowns but Varys is right. If Lio and Aina are speaking… he should let the conversation happen. Even if it ends poorly, it’ll be better than not happening at all. Everyone knows they act a bit stilted with each other. But Galo knows his entrance would just make things awkward.

Remi, however, disagrees.

“I’m going to listen.”

“What?” Galo asks as Remi speeds past him. He doesn’t answer. He just sneaks up to the door and puts his ear next to it. It’s pretty wide open so he doesn’t need to do much to hear and Galo looks over at Varys, as if to assure himself it would be a bad idea to eavesdrop. Varys shakes his head at him. He’s assuring him. Don’t eavesdrop.

Galo sneaks over. He stands on the other side of the door and keeps quiet.

“What?” Lio’s voice is sort of demanding. “He what?”

“I said that wrong,” Aina stutters. “I _ thought _he was about to kiss me.”

Remi looks up at Galo, whose heart starts to race. He has never in his life almost kissed Aina. He’s not sure what she’s talking about.

“I’m glad he didn’t,” she adds. 

“You are?”

“Yes, because it would have complicated things. I would have convinced myself I had feelings I don’t have.”

Galo frowns wildly at Remi. This… isn’t what he expected to hear. But the conversation barrels ahead:

“So… what happened?”

“Well, we were out on the frozen lake and then he… saw you.”

There’s a pause.

“Me?”

“He saw a Burnish flame streak across the sky in the reflection of the ice,” she says and Galo suddenly knows the exact moment she’s talking about. They were standing on the frozen lake. Aina had come out to find him. It was one of those moments where Galo realized Aina knew him better than he knew himself sometimes. Didn’t he _ just _tell Lio about this moment, too? “He got closer and I thought we were about to kiss, but - he was just getting a better look. At you.”

She’s right. That’s exactly what happened, but Galo never knew she was expecting a kiss. He’s so glad she never brought it up before. Remi seems somewhat amused but Galo just shakes his head. He narrows his eyes and Galo shrugs at him in confusion. Is he trying to say something?

“That was the day he tried to ambush us in the cave,” Lio says. 

“Ambush,” Aina scoffs. “As if Galo would do that. But you know what happened from there.”

“I do?”

“Everything is snowballing… I think you’re running out of time.”

Lio clearly doesn’t know what she’s talking about, and neither does Galo.

“What do you mean?”

“Your soulmate is going to find someone else if you don’t… you know.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Are you actually that dumb or are you saving face? I won’t bother you about it. I don’t want to force you to admit to anything. But if you want to be his _ soulmate,” _she says, putting extra emphasis on that word, “then I’d suggest doing it now.”

It clicks. 

Galo’s eyes go wide and he’s a little slack-jawed. He stares at the floor as he realizes it: she means romantic soulmates. She means _ soulmates. _

He looks at Remi, who’s avoiding his gaze. _ “Awkward,” _he mouths and Galo is so taken aback that he has to leave. He goes back to Varys in a daze, and Remi remains, continuing to listen in. But Galo has heard enough.

“Not a good idea, huh?” Varys asks. Galo’s eyes travel up to him in complete shock and he sits down at the table. Flops into the chair and stares at the surface.

Lio? Lio Fotia? Might _ like _ him? Love is too strong of a word at this point but Lio Fotia might _ like- _like him? As in, he may have a crush?

On _ Galo? _

He racks his brain for anything in the past few weeks that might have been a sign he missed. He’s noticed Lio looking at his lips a few times, but he thought that was just because they were talking about kissing. Is mere kiss conversation flirting? Has Lio been flirting and Galo didn’t realize it?

What about everyone else? Have they been groaning at him, calling them lovers, because they thought Lio liked him, too? Is it pathetically obvious to everyone but Galo? And if so, why? He can read Lio like a book. If Lio really does have a crush on him, he’s actually a little devastated. That means he hasn’t been picking up on Lio’s cues quite as well as he thought.

Galo just doesn’t really think about stuff like that. He never has and he didn’t meet Lio during a time in his life that that was about to change. Everything about Lio was strictly non-romantic. They weren’t soulmates because they were intertwined _ romantically. _ They’re soulmates because they complete each other. They’re both a whole on their own, but together, they’re two halves that make up something even greater. Galo never expected things to turn into _ this _kind of soulmate.

He’s never had particularly bad self-esteem despite his constant need for praise. He doesn't really judge his worth based on anything but how well he’s doing helping other people. But some little part of him reminds him that he’s never thought of himself as the guy someone else has a crush on. Too much of his life has just been about joining the Burning Rescue, training to take on the Burnish and avoiding certain death. It didn’t revolve around romance - no one’s did, really. He thinks Remi might have a girlfriend but otherwise everyone seems pretty single. And he’s not too sure about Remi, either.

No one really talks about love. Not that kind of love.

So it makes sense, in a way, that he didn’t catch on. No one here really discusses crushes or love lives. Galo’s team focuses on their love for each other and for Promepolis as a whole. It’s not like they _ can’t _ have romance in their lives; it’s not like it would be _ difficult. _It’s just never been anyone’s focus.

So is Galo ready to let Lio focus on it?

He isn’t sure he’s ready for that question. He’s not ready to find out what his answer is one way or the other. There is no single conclusion that works best for him - they all have their drawbacks - and this is a little too much for him right now. He should probably leave. He should leave before he runs into Lio. 

“Don’t tell him I was here,” he says abruptly. Varys raises an eyebrow at him as he rises from the table. But as he turns around - he runs into Lio.

“Oh!”

“Sorry!”

“Sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

“You’re okay.”

“It’s fine. Sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

Galo isn’t even sure who’s saying what. All he knows is that he didn’t want to see Lio right now and that’s the first time that’s ever happened.

“I’m just going - to - the table,” Lio says. Galo doesn’t know if he’ll meet his eyes because he won’t meet Lio’s.

“Okay.”

“Isn’t it your day off?”

Galo is taken off guard. It _ is _ his day off. Why did he come in? Oh yeah - to talk to Lio. But that doesn’t seem very appropriate anymore.

“I left a shirt here I needed,” he says. “I’m headed home now.”

“Oh okay.”

That’s Galo’s cue to leave - before Lio can realize he doesn’t have this mythical shirt - but for some reason… he’s rooted to the spot.

He actually still wants an answer. He wants to know why Lio left without saying anything.

It made him feel worse than he realized. Like a one-night stand that Lio couldn’t even bother coming up with an excuse for. They didn’t touch but Galo feels like they did.

“I, uh…”

Galo looks at him. It seems that Lio is picking up on it.

“I left because I had to get here,” he says. “Sorry I didn’t say bye.”

“That’s okay,” Galo says nervously. “You didn’t need to.”

“I just didn’t want you to think I was… standing you up.”

“You weren’t.” Galo is clenching his teeth at the metaphor. “I get it.”

“Okay,” Lio says, turning around and heading to the table. “I… bye, then.”

“Bye,” Galo says hurriedly as he turns around and rushes out. He books it as fast as he can to the exit. He’s gotta get out of here. He needs a second to himself. He has to gather himself and his thoughts. 

So when Aina shows up in front of him, he actually winces. How’d she even get there? Wasn’t she in the break room? She must have gone outside for a moment when he was talking to Lio and he missed her completely. He wonders if he can sneak by just as she turns to look at him. Her eyes seem to light up and he knows he can’t ignore her or blow her off now. She smiles at him and even if it’s a little more subtle, he gets that feeling again: everything sort of melts away.

“Hey,” she says. Galo relaxes.

“Hey.”

“Isn’t it your day off?”

“Yeah, I…” Galo looks at the ground, wondering if _ she’ll _notice he doesn’t have a t-shirt. “I came in to talk to… Lio. But I didn’t need to anymore.”

Aina tilts her head as if she knows exactly what happened. And for all Galo knows, she does. She might’ve seen him or Remi. He _ was _a little distracted when he ambled away from the doorframe.

“You know,” Galo says, “I get that things have been strained because Lio is important to me now. But-”

“I don’t blame him for hating Heris,” she says. “And by extension having a hard time looking at me.”

“If he ever made me choose between him and you… I’d choose you. You know that, right?”

“He’d never do that.”

“And if _ you _ever made me choose between him and you, I’d choose him.”

“_ I’d _never do that.”

They both smile at each other. 

“Besides,” Aina adds, “I think we’re doing a lot better now.”

That’s news.

“You are?”

“I just had a conversation with him alone and he shook my hand afterwards.”

Galo rolls his eyes.

“Yeah, that sounds like Lio.”

“He was trying,” she shrugs. “I appreciated the effort.”

“Gosh,” Galo says, rubbing the back of his neck. “He left without saying bye. I was so…”

“What?”

“He stayed the night and when I woke up he wasn’t there,” Galo says. “I felt really dirty about it. Like… gross, dirty. Just… bad.”

“That’s because…” She trails off. Galo looks up at her and raises an eyebrow. “Well, I don’t know why that is, but you don’t need to feel that way. I know he wouldn’t mean to make you feel bad.”

“I know,” Galo says. “I just… how did he sneak out of bed without waking me up? I’m really the heaviest sleeper.”

Aina pauses.

“What?”

“How did he sneak out right from under me?” Galo repeats. “I’ve slept through tornadoes before but… someone right next to me?”

“He was in your bed?”

“Yeah.”

“Alone? Or?”

“No, with me.”

“Galo.”

Galo meets her gaze in curiosity. He lifts his eyebrows to ask her to continue.

“Galo!” she shouts. 

“What?” he cries.

“Will you two figure it out?!”

“What?” he repeats. “Figure what out?”

She sounds like she’s teasing - but also frustrated. Galo doesn’t know what to make of it. 

“You’re always together, you have secret places and little things only you two know and do. You sleep in the same bed apparently and you don’t mind when people call you soulmates-”

“Yeah, because we’re soulmates!”

“But Galo,” she says, putting up a hand to stop him. “Are you _ soulmates?” _

Galo’s entire world halts for a second. Lio could have feelings for him. He’s just understood that. 

But he could also have feelings for Lio.

That hadn’t occurred to him before. Sure, maybe Lio has a crush. But Galo might have a crush, too. But does he? How does someone usually figure that out? And can he tell Aina, or should he keep it to himself? That he isn’t sure how he feels? Maybe he just needs more time. It calls for a little extra attention; he can’t just make a decision standing here right now.

“No, of… of course we’re not _ that _kind of soulmates,” he stutters. “It’s just kind of a funny joke… about… how soulmates don’t have to be romantic.”

Aina thinks for a moment and then nods.

“Sure,” she agrees. “I think my sister is my soulmate. And that’s not romantic obviously. Just make sure you aren’t denying anything. I have to get back to work.”

She gives Galo a small hug. Galo tries to hug back but he’s too flabbergasted. He’s never had a crush before. And he’s not sure if he has one now. But if he does… 

He goes back home. He lays in bed. He thinks. He lays there and he thinks. For _ hours. _ Three hours and all he does is _ think. _ He thinks about how they met. He was so stupid and - ignorant. Ignorant is a special kind of stupid. Ignorant means he was nearly offensive and he can’t imagine anyone having a crush on him after being asked, _ “So you eat, too?” _He treated Lio like the Burnish weren’t even human. How can Lio have a crush on him after something like that?

Lio has always said people change. It’s sort of his point about Kray - Kray won’t change. That’s what he thinks, at least. Galo doesn’t know that he agrees with that specific assessment, but he does with the basic premise that people _ do _ change. And he definitely changed. It would’ve been nice if he hadn’t had to - if he had just always known the Burnish were just like him; if he’d just always been aware that they weren’t criminal terrorists. But he never knew Kray hated them quite so much and even before he _ knew _ Lio, he defended Burnish like the pizza guy. He didn’t do anything wrong; he shouldn’t have been arrested. He wasn’t evil. Just _ ignorant. _

Lio is the opposite of ignorant. Lio is so…

It’s times like these that Galo supposes it _ might _ be a crush. He trails off so easily about Lio. Loses his train of thought because he’s so caught up in an inexplicable _ thing _ about Lio that he can’t put into words. Galo was ignorant and Lio helped him become _ not _ ignorant. Lio could hate him. Lio could despise him for arresting him, for ever being so stupid to think that he was the problem. But he came to work with Galo so easily. He came to work for Burning Rescue of all things. He told Galo he was _ good, _ he’s a _ good person _and deserves real praise. Galo can’t imagine that Lio has a crush on him, but things like that… things like that make him double-guess.

No - that’s just Lio being a good friend. That’s just Lio loving Galo in a platonic way. The way friends are supposed to love each other. It’s a good thing. Galo shouldn’t make it into something it’s not.

He does _ love _ Lio. Of course he does, he’s never made that a secret. Lio is such a good friend that he can’t imagine life without him now and he’s hardly known him for half a year. But romance can kill a friendship if it doesn’t work out and like everyone says - they’re soulmates. If they ruin that, what does Galo have? They let people call them soulmates but Galo enjoys it. He doesn’t want that to change. But it can’t stay the same if he has _ feelings _for Lio, can it? 

What is he trying to figure out exactly? If Lio has a crush on him? Or if he has a crush on Lio? Or both? Is it his business how Lio feels about him? If Lio doesn’t _ make _ it his business, he doesn’t have any room to worry. And wouldn’t he _ know _if he had a crush on Lio himself? Or - isn’t that kind of the thing about love? It works very mysteriously and Galo has had a very limited experience with tat side of it. His life has been dominated by platonic love. But that familial and romantic kind - he doesn’t know those as well. 

“Gah!”

He shouts with a start when his phone rings. He nearly leaps out of the bed entirely. He looks over and checks the I.D. It’s Lio, of course. Because no one else really calls him. Everyone else texts. Lio texts, too. But he’s the only one who also calls. Even Ignis prefers to text him.

“Hello?”

“Go grocery shopping with me.”

Lio has this habit of demanding something from Galo and Galo has this habit of agreeing without question. So when he nods to himself and says, “Sure,” over the receiver, Lio hangs up, presumably already on his way over. 

It happens so quickly that Galo doesn’t have a second to realize how awkward this is until a few seconds after the phone call ends.

This is really soon to be seeing Lio after such a confusing concept has been presented to him. Is this okay? Can he go grocery shopping - something incredibly boring but also domestic - with Lio without letting this question creep into his attitude? 

By the time Lio is outside his door, Galo remembers the important: with Lio, everything melts away.

He gives him a little smile and their earlier awkward encounter disappears. Lio returns the grins and they hop on Galo’s bike, Lio’s arms wrapped warmly around Galo’s waist like nothing weird ever happened. And for a long time, Galo forgets, too.

“Lio.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you ever still hate me?”

They’re standing by the peaches. Lio is squishing each one in his hand. He turns to Galo abruptly, his face visibly troubled. Furrowed brows and slightly loose lips. Staring up at him seriously. Peach in hand.

“Still?” he asks. “What?”

“Like, when we first met, you hated me, right?”

“No,” he says sternly. “Did you hate me?”

“No,” Galo shrugs. “But I was the one in the wrong.”

“What do you mean ‘in the wrong?’”

“I arrested you.”

“You were following orders.”

“You and I both know that doesn’t matter.”

“It does matter when you’ve been lied to,” he says. “You really thought you were doing the right thing. I can’t fault you for that.” He goes back to the produce. “Plus, I’ve told you before. I like you because when you found out you were the one in the wrong, you changed it. You didn’t try to double down on hurting people. You would never hurt someone on purpose.”

“But I did hurt you.”

“How?”

“Just in...” he says. “By thinking you were… what’s the word?”

“Conceptually?”

“Yes!”

“Do we have to have this conversation?” Lio asks suddenly. He looks away from Galo but he seems troubled. “Kray hated the Burnish and he _ was _Burnish. He’s in his own category. You’re a good person. I know you are. I have a good sense for these things. And that’s all that matters.” He pauses. “Or at least, that’s all I care about.”

“Are you sure?”

“Where is this coming from?”

“Just… thinking a lot lately.”

“About us?”

He turns and grins at Galo handsomely. Galo rolls his eyes.

“You need any pineapple?”

“Sure,” Lio says. Galo throws a whole pineapple in his cart. Lio lived off stolen and scavenged fruits and vegetables for so long that Galo thought he wouldn’t like them anymore but he especially loves fruit. He gets some grapes, strawberries and mangoes, too.

“I bet if I shove this entire donut in my mouth right now, they won’t notice.”

Lio raises his eyebrow and studies Galo for a few seconds. The bakery is deserted. Galo quirks his own eyebrow up back at Lio.

“Why don’t you test that little hypothesis?”

Galo shoves the entire donut in his mouth. No one notices.

“My mom used to make this meatloaf with no ketchup,” Lio says in the butcher department. “I wish I’d gotten the recipe. Meatloaf is so particular and I hate everyone else’s.”

“I’ve never had meatloaf.”

“You haven’t?” Lio asks incredulously.

“Sounds awful.”

“It does sound awful,” Lio nods, pulling a bag of bread off the shelf. “But my mom’s was really good. She also made really good butter cookies.”

“Oh, I love cookies.”

“I know you do.”

“My mom used to make this really great dinner called ‘she didn’t come home so I had frozen pizza every day for a week.’”

Lio turns and frowns at him. Galo doesn’t usually talk about the depressing stuff but he couldn’t really help it. Doing these domestic things with Lio makes him wish he had family stories of his own to tell. Lio picks up on that.

“We should cook something together sometime,” he says. “We can start our own tradition.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Lio smiles. “You said you know how to cook, right?”

“I’m a good cook,” Galo nods. “I had to be, otherwise I wouldn’t have eaten.”

“Because your parents were always gone.”

It’s a statement, not a question. Galo picks a grape off the stem in Lio’s cart and pops it in his mouth. 

“Yep,” he says grimly. “But whatever. You want any milk?”

“Just for the cereal,” Lio says.

“Right. Avoiding dairy.”

“It’s a terrible industry,” Lio says for the countless time. “And bad for your skin.”

He thinks it so much but it’s so true - being around Lio is _ so easy _that everything comes so naturally. Nothing makes him awkward. Nothing makes him nervous.

Until they get back to Lio’s place.

It’s so sweet and familial. This is how a couple interacts. A couple goes shopping, they plan their shared meals for the week. It’s such a necessity of life, to eat. But romantic couples _ have _to do this. And someone has to bring all the bags in when they get home. Lio is so small that he lets Galo to do that when they’re back. They put most of the stuff in one bag so it can hang off Galo’s bike, but it’s still too heavy for Lio to lift on his own, especially from the parking garage to the kitchen.

Galo doesn’t even think about how he knows where everything goes in Lio’s kitchen. He helped him put away his first real trip of groceries after the world started anew so a lot of Lio’s kitchen inventory is modeled after his own. He doesn’t consider how… domestic that is. Until Lio is leaning down to grab a the bag away from Galo, who’s turning to hand it off to him.

And they come so close to kissing that Galo’s heart nearly bursts right out of his chest.

Lio doesn’t back up immediately and Galo is too shocked to pull away, either. They sit like that, Lio bent over at the waist and Galo crouching at his pantry floor. The idea that Lio could be bent over like that during a more intimate activity sends Galo’s eyes wide. He imagines it. He imagines sex with Lio. He imagines what sex with Lio must be like for about four seconds. That’s when he swears Lio leans in closer and he can’t handle it. He has to jump away.

“I left my hair dryer plugged in!”

Lio blinks.

“I-”

“I have to go home!”

“Galo-”

“I’ll see you at work tomorrow!”

He books it. He just rushes out as quickly as he possibly can. He almost kissed Lio Fotia. He almost kissed Lio Fotia and as he’s speeding toward his own place, he realizes that he does, indeed, have feelings for Lio Fotia. He has _ romantic _ feelings, a crush, whatever he wants to call it, he has them and they’re for Lio fucking Fotia and the worst part about it is that he’s _ always _had these feelings for Lio fucking Fotia. He’s only just realized it now. He’s so distracted by everything that he doesn’t think at all about the fork in the road leading to the prison this time.

He really is the world’s dumbest firefighter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so there's this show i really love called peep show and one of them is swearing up and down he's an intelligent guy and the other one goes "you still don't properly understand the events of ocean's eleven" and the guy is like "well it's a complicated film" and the other one goes "it's really not...." that's what inspired the first part of this chapter
> 
> also i think remi is a lowkey troublemaker and i love aina ardebit


	5. hypothesis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s so much. There’s too much happening in Galo’s brain. Galo’s incredibly lonely brain usually operates at a couple miles a day. Right now, it’s been going a million a minute.

Taking a shower at Burning Rescue doesn’t feel any different than taking a shower at home, but Galo has had… different things on his mind than are usual. So he’s suddenly hyper aware that he’s naked in his workplace, even if it’s only for a few minutes. He hurriedly covers himself up with a towel; he’s never worried about any of the other guys seeing him naked before but for some reason it’s running through his brain today.

It’s because the other things on his mind are sex. And sex, specifically, with friends.

Not specific friends. Just the idea of having sex with one’s friends. He doesn’t think about sex often. But he does think about his friends a lot. So it must make sense that when he’s thinking about a new thing, his good old standby is still there to influence him.

This is all a very roundabout way of saying he can’t stop wondering what it would be like to kiss Lio, and he feels terrible about it.

It isn’t really appropriate because Lio can’t consent to those thoughts. He doesn’t know Galo is thinking about it so he can’t say no, stop, that’s not cool, so Galo wonders if he simply shouldn’t to begin with. But it’s not something he usually does think about so now -

He’s a wreck. An absolute mess. His body is on fire twenty-four, seven. And this is a very different kind of fire that he’s never experienced before.

His burning firefighter’s soul never prepared him for this.

Dressing is a welcome relief. Covering himself up makes him feel like he can distract himself from this dumpster fire of a brain. But when he pulls out his t-shirt, something falls to the ground. It’s a piece of paper that’s folded up with some scrawling on it. He leans down and picks it up.

_ Rooftop, please. _

_ -Lio _

It’s cute how he’s polite even when writing, especially because Galo can hear the sarcasm in his voice. _ Rooftop, please. _He’s so damn cute. Galo heads for the rooftop. He just took a shower but he could stand to spar. He hasn’t been to the gym in a week.

He was heart-poundingly scared when he thought they were going to kiss a few days prior. Not because they _ were _ going to kiss, but because they were so close that Galo remembers now what it feels like to be that intimate with Lio, only this wasn’t a matter of life or death. This could have been a real, honest-to-God kiss. He’s thought about Lio nonstop since then which he realizes isn’t any different than usual. He’s always thought about Lio nonstop. He’s always _ liked _Lio. Always had a crush. He just didn’t realize it before now. It’s a lot, realizing everything he’s ever done has been as a response to having feelings for someone he didn’t know he had, but he wonders now if it’s okay for him to still be reacting to them. Maybe he shouldn’t go to the roof? Maybe he should start trying to be a little more subtle. Pull back a bit. He doesn’t want to upset Lio. He doesn’t want to upset the equilibrium. He and Lio are friends - soulmates. His crush might ruin it.

But then he remembers that Lio might like him back. He probably doesn’t, but it’s a possibility. At least, Aina thought it was. Galo doesn’t want to make any assumptions, though. He just heads to the rooftop and does his best to will the thoughts away.

The ceremony they’re expected to be at is tonight. Galo wonders what Lio is going to wear.

He’s wearing a t-shirt and Burning Rescue pants when Galo finds him on the roof. Galo thinks about Lio wearing a suit. Not even a full suit but a button-up and slacks, pink tie. That’s what he usually wears. He throws a jacket over his shoulder and carries it with him everywhere. It’s adorable. It’s an aesthetic all his own that Galo could never replicate.

“Hey.”

He turns around and meets Galo’s eyes. Everything in Galo’s world melts away.

“You wanna fight me?”

Lio is standing on the platform for the helicopter pad. He’s looking over the edge of the build, safely tucked far from it but still staring longingly onto the street below. Galo joins him. He glances downward and then upward, then backs up. He doesn’t get vertigo looking down. But looking up… he gets a little sick. He’s never told anyone this. 

“I’ve been thinking about the election stuff.”

Galo’s eyebrows raise up a bit. He wasn’t expecting that.

“Yeah?”

“It just sounds so stupid out loud. I mean, the concept… makes enough sense. It isn’t me, though. I’ve been fighting the government my whole life. Do I really want to become it?”

Galo nods his head for a few moments.

“That’s a good point,” he shrugs. “What’s the alternative? What’s the word for when everything is just running wild?”

“Anarchy?”

“Yes,” Galo snaps. “Is that the alternative to organized government?”

“I guess.”

“Do you think that’s better?”

“I think the best thing is a government that’s _ actually _ run by the people,” he says. “Too many politicians are in the pockets of corporations. Kray literally _ was _a corporation.”

“Isn’t the best way to get that to build it from the ground up?” Galo asks. And he’s genuinely asking. He doesn’t know at all. It’s what he thinks. But he doesn’t know a damn thing.

“I guess so. I mean, the only reason I asked you to come up here was to tell you I think I’m gonna do it.”

“Oh,” Galo says in shock. “You are?”

“I think so.”

Galo thinks about it for a few moments. For some reason, his train of thought goes straight to the idea of dating the mayor of Promepolis. But he and Lio are not dating, will not date, and Lio isn’t the mayor. There is no mayor. The last mayor - he wasn't mayor, but now Galo is thinking about dating Kray, so he shakes his head nervously and laughs out loud.

“Don’t do it if you’re only trying to please others,” he says. “Do what you want.”

“I don’t try to please others, that’s you.”

Galo freezes. Lio didn’t say it with any particular spite, but Galo sure felt it right in his burning soul. Galo _ did _only tell him not to please others because he thought of trying to please Kray, but he didn’t expect Lio to be so… rude.

“Is that me?” he asks. Lio shrugs. He’s still looking down at the street below them, signaling that he really didn’t mean to say anything to upset him.

“You love praise, don’t you?”

  
“Everyone loves praise.”

“But you _ run _on it.”

Galo shifts uncomfortably. Lio still doesn’t seem to be trying to pick a fight. He’s probably just distracted by his own thoughts. But still -

“Is that a bad thing?”

Lio smiles. Galo’s worry melts away.

“No, it’s fine… just as long as you don’t…”

Galo tilts his head but Lio doesn’t finish immediately. He actually takes a step closer and starts to turn his head toward Galo instead.

“How do you feel when you’re praised?”

It’s a strange question but Galo considers it nonetheless. He hums loudly.

“It makes me feel seen,” is what he comes up with. It’s the most base, honest answer he can think of.

“Seen?”

“Like… people notice me. Which I guess is a little selfish.”

Lio takes another step closer. Galo turns to him, opening fully.

“You do the right thing every time, regardless of how hard it is, Galo.”

“Yeah…”

“You’re not selfish.”

Galo looks down in time to see Lio’s arm touch his own. He was too busy thinking about the question to realize how close they were but now they he sees it, he pulls away sharply and laughs again. 

“I guess it’s sort of gotten me into trouble.”

Lio might be staring at him but he isn’t sure; he can’t look.

“What?”

“Just - all that praise from Kray… that meant so much to me.”

“Well,” Lio says quickly, “now you get praise from people who mean it.”

“Yeah,” Galo nods. “I still feel like an idiot, though.”

“You’re not.”

“I think about all the people I put in danger.”

“What?” Lio asks incredulously. "You didn’t put anyone in danger. Kray was a megalomaniac dictator eugenics lover. He wanted to be a supreme leader and have everyone worship him.”

“Well, I did.”

“And he didn’t even care about you back.”

Lio’s not being a jerk. It’s true. But it really hurts to hear it, regardless.

“I still have a hard time wrapping my head around that.”

“Around _ what?” _

“That it was _ never _ genuine,” he says. “He _ never _cared. Really? Never?”

“Never, Galo. He was too busy killing an entire demographic he saw as subhuman.”

“I know, but I th-”

“There’s no ‘but,’” Lio says. “You don’t need to worry about someone like _ that _not liking you. Just hate him.” He pauses, and then in frustration says: “Why can’t you just hate him?”

“I do hate him,” he says. “It’s just a lot of adjusting.”

“To what?”

“To realizing that my hero isn’t heroic.”

“What’s to adjust to? He _ killed _ us. He tried to kill _ you!” _

“He also saved me.”

“He didn’t even mean to,” Lio spits. 

“Can you just let me grieve?” Galo doesn’t mean to sound uppity. Everything Lio is saying is absolutely true. He just needs to be able to share this feeling with his soulmate. “I’m sorry, I know you get it. I just… I lost something really important.”

“Didn’t you gain something, too?”

Galo is taken aback. He doesn’t answer right away.

“Yeah,” he says. “Of course.”

“Why isn’t that enough?”

Galo knows he’s asking why isn’t _ he _ enough. _ Lio. _ Why can’t _ Lio _ be enough for Galo and Galo doesn’t know how to answer that. Mostly because Lio _ is _enough for him. He’s more than enough - but Galo doesn’t know how to tell him that right now.

“It _ is _enough,” he stutters. “You don’t understand.”

“No, I don’t,” Lio says. “I don’t understand why it’s so hard for you to hate him.”

“It’s not,” Galo says defensively. “I do hate him. But my entire life revolved around him. Burning Rescue only happened for me because of him - I _ lived _because of him. Do you know how hard it is to not take the street to the prison after work sometimes?”

“Are you saying you want to see him again?” Lio seems incredulous and if Galo was smarter he’d diffuse the situation. Instead:

“Sometimes.”

And that infuriates Lio.

“You want to defend a mass murderer?”

“I’m not _ defending _him,” Galo says. “Don’t put words in my mouth.”

“You want to _ see _a mass murderer?”

“Only when I’m weak.”

“When aren’t you weak?”

“Hey!” Galo barks.

“All I see is a weak little boy who just goes to where the spotlight is.”

Galo slams his hand down.

“Yeah? All _ I _see is… is…”

“You can’t think of anything, can you?”

“Run for mayor, see if I care!” he shouts, turning and storming away. He gets to the door without Lio saying anything, so he adds: “Just don’t count on my vote!”

“Like I’d need it!” Lio calls after him as he slams the door to the roof behind him. He stomps downstairs and through the main lobby. No one stops him, which is good. He’s too furious to speak. He was trying to be honest and open: sometimes he’s weak. It’s true. He can be weak. He isn’t _ always _weak. Lio didn’t need to tell him he was. Lio needed to support him.

They need to support each other. But if he can’t count on Lio then Lio can’t count on him. He gets on his bike and rides off. It used to be the frozen lake that he’d drive off to - and it still is physically, but now it’s just a crater in the earth. The government designated it as a historical landmark after they cleaned up the debris from when the Deux Ex launched. That’s what it was called then. Not Lio de Galon. Not Galo de Lion. 

Maybe it should have stayed that way.

Galo’s own father didn’t really care much for him. He wasn’t really around and didn’t pay much attention to him when he was. His mom was the same way. They weren’t abusive and they weren’t even that _ bad, _they just weren’t present. They were a little neglectful and don’t communicate with him much now that he’s away from home. And he did leave as soon as possible. The first person who made him realize that humans had empathy was Kray Foresight. Whether or not it was genuine, it was true for Galo. That’s the first person he felt true sympathy from. But it wasn’t true. Galo just didn’t realize that yet.

If he’d been rescued from the fire that day by a woman, he would’ve felt the same way. He needed a parent. He needed a guardian. Someone to take care of him. If Kray had been female, he would have seen him as a mother figure. But as it were, it’s easy to say _ daddy issues _ and leave it at that. But there’s more to it. It’s not just that Kray was a father figure; he was a _ guardian _ figure. Galo doesn’t _ think _ there was ever any underlying romantic feelings there. It was always purely familial: Kray rescued him like his parents _ would _ have done, had they been home. Galo’s always been a little grateful they weren’t, because there’s a chance someone would have died. Rescuing one person versus three is a lot easier, even if two of them were adults and more able to save themselves. In any case, Galo was rescued. That’s the point. That’s what happened and there’s no changing it: Kray _ rescued _Galo. That’s what Galo’s truth was for so long.

And yes, as time wore on, he imprinted more and more on Kray because he was the first adult to pay him any attention. Even if it wasn’t real, Kray was _ exceedingly _ good at pretending. That’s sort of the whole problem. Kray was so great at faking everything and Galo isn’t the type of person to question it. He _ feels _like he can pick out a liar but he can’t. Kray proved that. It isn’t Galo’s strong point. It’s not a strength of Galo’s to sniff out insincerity; he’s always sort of trusted people at face value. Why wouldn’t he? Isn’t life a lot sadder if you don’t trust people? Lio knows that for certain. He couldn’t trust people. He’s a lot sadder for that. 

And that’s what kept him safe. That’s why Galo ended up in a cage and Lio didn’t.

There really _ isn’t _anything special about Kray. It could’ve been anyone. Anyone could have run into the building that day and carried him out - a real firefighter could have saved him and Galo would’ve imprinted on them instead. If a five-year-old had saved him, Galo might’ve considered them his parental figure. That’s how needy he was. How desperate. Galo just wanted someone to pay attention to him. That’s all.

But this is all why he knows logically he doesn’t need to worry about Kray. He’s not stupid for choosing Kray. He didn’t make some deep, personal judgment call. Anyone could have been Galo’s hero. It just happened to be the world’s most evil man alive and Galo was just too trusting to question it. 

Why would he? Kray saved his life. Lio saved his life, too. So does he feel the same way about Lio?

No. Like he said, there were no underlying romantic feelings for Kray. He wasn’t in love with him.

He’s not _ in love _ with Lio. But he sure does feel a way that he can’t define. He can _ only _ imagine it’s romantic. When they first met, Lio was antagonistic. That made sense. He should have been. He should have _ hated _ Galo, even though he was secretly trying to get caught. Galo was still his nemesis then and Galo understands that. He hates that he was so stupid back then, so _ ignorant, _even if it wasn’t his fault. 

But why was Lio so antagonistic _ today? _And is it going to affect them at the ceremony tonight?

When did their relationship change, exactly? Everything was such a whirlwind that first week. Lio was not who Galo thought he was. Maybe that’s still true. But Galo was pathetically predictable from the start. He’s sort of boring in that sense. What one sees is what they get with Galo and Lio knew that on day one. 

Lucia and Galo are close enough because she likes to ask him to test out her new tech inventions. Varys and Remi are definitely Galo’s friends but they’re actually closer to each other than anyone else on the team. And Ignis is his superior, so they’re _ close, _ but not _ close-close. _ Aina is the closest thing he’s ever had to a best friend - in fact, she _ is _ his best friend - up until he met Lio. Lio really understands him in a way no one really has, not even Aina, who really _ does _get most of Galo’s intricacies. She may not get him in as complete of a sense that Lio does, but she’s still his best friend. One of them, at least. But while Lio will tease him like Aina does, he also goes along with most of his plans. He indulges Galo’s whims and Galo’s never had someone do that before. Aina doesn’t truly believe him to be an idiot. But she doesn’t quite follow his train of thoughts the way Lio does.

Galo gets that Lio is a little lost right now. He achieved his goal and doesn’t know what to do next. He gets that politics sounds silly to Lio, even if it seems like the natural next step for him to Galo. They’re messy and unpredictable and Lio was good with that when the survival of his people was on the line, but now that the Promare is gone, Lio has to fight for _ other _disenfranchised people. He may feel unequipped for that. Galo understands. But if he were ever at a loss, he would trust Lio to empathize and fight for him. That’s why he thinks Lio should do it. He should run for mayor. He should help more people than he ever thought he could. He’s a selfless person. He could do it. Easily.

But it’s so organized and opposite of what Mad Burnish was about. For a “fringe terrorist cell” - which is what they were _ called, _ not what they _ were - _they were fairly peaceful. They didn’t kill; they only destroyed property. And of course, now Galo understands why. They were in the right the whole time. If Lio could see that from the start, then Galo trusts him to continue knowing things. He knows more than Galo does, at least.

The Mad Burnish was an organized chaos that doesn’t exist anymore. And that leads Galo to his next thought: why does Burning Rescue exist still, either?

He only joined it because of Kray. It’s the thing that’s painfully obvious to everyone but no one mentions. Because they like him. They want him to stay. They want Galo to continue working with them well into whatever Burning Rescue becomes. And if they mention Kray… Galo might quit. He might do it. What’s the point? He feels a little like Lio. Lost. Unseen. Confused. His whole _ life _ was built around _ Kray. _ And Kray just wanted him _ dead. _ Well, maybe he didn’t _ want _ him dead but he wouldn’t have _ minded _if he died. 

So should Galo continue such a dangerous job? Is his purpose and drive still the same? Shouldn’t Burning Rescue just disband and go their separate ways? Why are they trying to - Galo forgets the word. Why are they trying to join the regular fire department, especially when they’ve had things under control for years? 

Integrate. That’s the word. Galo ruffles his own hair in frustration as the alarm on his phone goes off. It’s time to get ready for the ceremony. The ceremony he’s expected at; the one he _ and _his soulmate are supposed to attend. They’re supposed to be there and smile solemnly and nod along in remembrance. Join hands and show that they’re still the poster children for unity. See? A Burnish managed to get along with a fellow human long enough to defeat the evil that wanted to kill everyone. That’s a message worth sending.

Or maybe people think of it the opposite way: a “normal human” saw beyond the Burnish disgrace and teamed up with him despite the discrimination we’re all hating now; we’re all pretending we always hated it; but we didn’t; half the world hated the Burnish and even though Galo never _ hated _them, he certainly worked against them and - 

It’s so much. There’s too much happening in Galo’s brain. Galo’s incredibly lonely brain usually operates at a couple miles a day. Right now, it’s been going a million a minute.

Whatever. It’s time to leave. It’s time to put on a suit and go to the heart of Promepolis with his “soulmate.” Pretend like they’re getting along and grin and bear it.

He trudges to his bike and rides home slowly to put on his suit. If he were a pettier man, he’d “forget” to take his hoodie off and just put the jacket on over it. But he’s not petty and just because he’s mad at Lio doesn’t mean he’s mad at the Burnish, especially not the ones who lost their lives in a plan he was complicit in.

In all his thinking, he actually does forget to take his hoodie off. He shows up at the ceremony with a sports coat over his sweatshirt but no one seems to notice. They’re too busy noticing that he and Lio came separately.

“Where’s Lio?”

“Don’t know,” Galo shrugs. He’s trying not to make it obvious that anything is wrong, especially not to Aina, who’s been doing nothing but her best. She’s the reason he realized he has feelings. It’s complicated things but he’s grateful more than he’s not. He wants to know these things about himself. Of course even Aina knows him better than he does.

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Galo says. “I’m not his caretaker.”

“Usually you show up to these things together,” she says. “You know. In solidarity.”

Galo looks around. It’s taking place outside so it’s not like there’s a spot in a room to go to to signal he’s not interested in talking. All he can do is walk towards the platform set up in the front of the space and stand near the chairs he’s sure they want him in. Before he does that though, he looks back at his friend with a smile.

“You look really nice,” he tells Aina. She seems surprised. “Really pretty.”

“Thank you,” Aina says quickly. “You make a hoodie look handsome yourself.”

Galo doesn’t say anything. He just smiles wider and nods, then heads towards the staged area. Sure enough, his name is on a chair. All of Burning Rescue’s names are on the chairs actually, including Lio’s, which is right next to his. He didn’t know the whole team was going to be a part of this and suddenly feels very selfish; full of himself. Ignis didn’t make any mention of this being a team thing. Just that Galo and Lio had to be there.

Aina doesn’t follow him immediately. Remi’s name is next to his, so when she does approach several minutes later, she just takes her seat a few away from Galo and keeps to herself. She can tell something is wrong. She’s not Lucia. She doesn’t meddle where she isn’t wanted. She gets on her phone and waits. Galo steals a few glances at her hair. It’s down and has a little wave in it. It’s pink and thin and things would be a lot easier if Aina were his soulmate. Maybe. She’s beautiful.

He’s not in love with her, though.

Remi and Ignis show up next, then Varys and then Lucia. Just when Galo thinks Lio isn’t even going to come, he pops up with Gueira and Meis in tow. They talk for a few seconds near the back of the chairs and Galo doesn’t know why he glares when they sit down. He hasn’t seen those two in a while and they’re fun as hell. He misses them. There’s no reason to glare angrily in their direction and they seem to pick up on it because they try to wave but put their hands down immediately. They turn to each other and whisper as Lio approaches.

“So we’re sitting next to each other, huh?”

Galo glares at him, too.

“What did you expect?” he asks. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”

Lio stands there for a moment. He turns to Aina.

“Wanna switch seats?”

“Oh,” she says quietly. She looks at Galo but Galo refuses to look back. He glares straight ahead, leaning down onto his knees and twiddling his thumbs. Everyone is looking at the two of them and it’s increasingly clear something is very wrong. “Sure,” Aina finally says. She stands up quickly, her skirt ruffling in the wind.

“You look nice,” Lio says to her as he takes her chair. She takes a few steps toward Galo, stuttering a thank you as she sits down again, baffled.

Galo realizes then it’s actually _not_ like Aina to sit there confused. She’s usually quick to demand answers but Galo guesses today is weird for everyone.

The speaker is a woman that Galo’s seen before but never remembers her full name. She’s also ex-Burnish but, like Kray, kept it hidden to become a government official. In fact, there’s no evidence to really suggest she’s telling the truth, now that Galo thinks about it. Maybe she’s an elaborate ruse at a power grab. A ruthless lie, just like Kray. Okay, that’s probably not happening but it would be a fun plot twist. 

She mentions Deus Ex. Then Lio de Galon. Then Galo do Lion. Galo smiles, his lips turning inward and his eyes focused on the floor. Aina elbows him. He looks over and notices that Lio is doing the same. Lucia elbows _ him. _Their gazes meet but when their feigned grins vanish at each other, it’s clear: there’s trouble in paradise.

“What is wrong?” Aina whispers to Galo. Galo looks away like a petulant child. “There is clearly something up and I feel like it might be my fault.”

“It’s not,” Galo says, turning back to her quickly. “Trust me. It’s not.”

She pauses.

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“Then what is it?”

“It’s rude to talk during a memorial.”

There’s a moment of silence for the fallen Burnish. All Galo can think about is that he was complicit. He was part of it. He captured Burnish. He put out their flames. He silenced them. He was part of the problem. Putting out a Burnish flame was akin to shutting them up. 

Yet Lio loves him anyway.

He doesn’t deserve Lio’s love but maybe Lio doesn’t deserve his, either. Lio’s right. He _ is _ a good person. He doesn’t deserve to hear how weak he is, especially not from someone who’s supposed to build him _ up. _

But he’s supposed to build Lio up, too. Hearing your soulmate say it’s hard to hate the man who killed your people is probably doing the opposite of building Lio up. Still. Lio is supposed to have some sympathy for him. Just a little.

Galo doesn’t miss _ Kray. _He misses what Kray represented. Lio doesn’t represent the same thing. Lio cares about him but not in the way Galo thought Kray did. Lio isn’t his parent. Lio is just his soulmate.

_ Just _his soulmate.

No one else really seems to notice anything is wrong. When the speaker thanks Galo and Lio for their service, they both stand and wave but when the ceremony ends, Aina pulls Galo back from storming away.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s not your fault,” he says. “So it’s not your business.”

“If you’re making Burning Rescue look bad it is.”

“I didn’t!” he shouts. He points at Lio, behind her. “He’s the one who’s making us look bad.”

Lio turns and glares.

“How?” he asks. “I did everything you did. I took all my cues from you. Specifically so you couldn’t blame me afterward.”

Aina turns backward.

“What happened between you two?” she says, her voice getting louder. Burning Rescue is listening but no one else seems to realize a fight is happening. Maybe Gueira and Meis can see, but Galo doesn’t know where they are right now. “Why are you fighting?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Galo says. He looks over and Lio shrugs.

“Me neither,” he says. “Galo and I are soulmates.”

“Soulmates fight,” Ignis says, reaching out and clapping a hand on Aina’s shoulder for a moment in reassurance. It doesn’t hover there for long. “Let’s go get pizza.”

“I’ll pass,” Lio says. “I have stuff to do with Gueira and Meis.”

“Oh, do you?” Galo sneers. 

“Yeah,” Lio says. “We’re trying to figure out where we want to rent our next apartment.”

Galo freezes. 

Lio’s moving back in with Gueira and Meis?

Before he’d move back in with _ him? _

“What?”

“We’re moving in together again,” he says. Galo _ knows _this is a reaction to their fight. They’re probably not doing that. Gueira and Meis would be confused if they heard Lio right now. But the fact that Lio would use it to anger Galo - angers Galo.

“No you’re not. If I went and asked them right now, they’d say you’re not.”

“Why don’t you test that little hypothesis, then?”

Galo’s heart drops. And now Lio dares to use _ that _phrase for evil?

Galo knows true evil. He looked it in the face. He _ punched _it in the face. It trapped him, lied to him, caught him, held him captive in more ways than one. For years, evil had a hold on him. Evil told him it cared about him. It wanted him to do well. When it was really plotting his demise in the background the whole time.

“I have to go,” Galo says calmly. No one really stops him but when he gets to the edge of the chairs and turns around, Lio is staring. He seems to know. He knows what Galo is going to do. He knows where Galo is going.

When the road forks, he turns left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey! i just wanted to say thank you for the COMMENTS i've been getting!!!! everyone is so kind and motivational and i'm SO SORRY i haven't replied to literally any of them. (recently my phone broke so i've been scrambling for a new one so i haven't gotten my email notifs for them either) i just don't want anyone to think i don't want to expend the energy to reply and thank them because i do and i appreciate everything so much. any comments i get from now on i'm doing my best to reply to! 
> 
> i really hope this fic continues to please you guys!! only two more chapters after this :)


	6. analysis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cause of death: the Burnish will always be free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PROMERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL WHO CELEBRATE IT! and a happy holidays to everyone else. but promerry worked so well that i had to say Christmas

Galo doesn’t have much on his person when he shows up at the prison, so it’s not like he has much to hand over. What he’s worried about is if Kray will subject himself to him long enough to have a meaningful conversation. Or at all. There’s a chance that Galo will sit here waiting all night just for Kray to say no. For as monitored as his life is now, Kray still has the freedom to consent to seeing Galo. He can still ruin Galo’s life from beyond these bars. He doesn’t have to do much to torture him. All he has to do is exist. 

In fact, if Kray hadn’t survived - should Galo have let him survive? - he’d still be torturing him. So he doesn’t even have to exist.

That’s really the burning question, no pun intended. Should Kray even be in prison now? Or should Galo have let him rot six feet under, instead? Lio doesn’t really seem to mind that much. But Lio also still gets a little embarrassed about the night he flew through Promepolis as a dragon, which Galo doesn’t understand. Yes, he stopped him. Yes, he couldn’t see innocent people hurt. But he doesn’t _ blame _ Lio. The rage was justified. If Lio had killed Kray that night, Galo doesn’t know that he’d care. Well, he’d _ care, _ but he’d know he shouldn’t. He knows. He _ knows _he shouldn’t.

Lio _ should _ have been angry. Anger is the only way some things get done. Lio held enough anger inside his tiny body for all of the Burnish and that’s why he succeeded. _ The Burnish will always be free, _he’d said. And he was right. Galo was wrong. That’s all there is to it.

So should Galo have really let Kray live? He’d felt so strongly about it in the moment - just one strong punch to the face to knock him out and then he’d rescue Lio. And that’s exactly what happened. Then they rescued the world together. And now… 

Now they feel a certain way about each other. Well, Galo feels that way about Lio, at least. But he can’t hold his own anger back, either. Yes, Lio was justified. Yes, Galo was an absolute moron. A follower. A sheep. This is true.

But he’s allowed to be angry, too.

He tries to justify his own anger to himself as he sits in wait: he screwed up, but Burning Rescue as a whole never blamed the Burnish for their mutation. They never discriminated against them. They simply had to put out their fires. Which, yes, now Galo feels are, again, justified - a word he’s using a lot lately - but they still had to be put out by _ someone. _The Mad Burnish always left an escape route for the civilians caught up in the blaze and Galo gets that now. Maybe he should have gotten it before. But he didn’t and he can’t change that.

And Lio doesn’t expect him to. That’s the thing. Lio rightfully pointed out it was people like Galo that were responsible for the Burnish’s oppression - did he say _ like _Galo in order to separate him from them? - but he also become one with him in order to put that fire out. The fire that was Kray Foresight. He trusted him. He indulged him. He comforted him. Did Galo ever deserve any of that? Or should he be the one to comfort himself? Should Lio be expected to help him feel better?

But he doesn’t need to make him feel _ worse, _right?

There’s something very powerful about this decision. The choice to see Kray. Even if Kray refuses him, Galo can go back to Lio feeling more like himself. More like he has some say over what Kray dictates in his life now. He sure did command a lot before, but now it’s Galo’s turn. Galo’s the one who gets to decide for himself who is and isn’t worth it. What is and isn’t important.

And Burning Rescue is important. His team is important. Lio is part of that team - that family.

Oh. That family tree that Galo was once obsessed with. He’s finally figured it out - Lio isn’t a sibling at all. He’s not a father - not Galo’s, at least. Galo wants Lio to be a part of that tree. 

He wants him to be his partner.

The father of his own children.

Galo rubs his hands through his hair in frustration. It’s not okay. None of this is okay. He doesn’t care that Lio is moving back in with Gueira and Meis, that was just the straw that broke the camel’s back. What he cares about is that Lio called him weak. Lio thinks he’s _ weak, _ which is leagues worse than _ stupid. _

And it’s not like Lio never called him an idiot, either. He’s called him dumb plenty of times. Galo just knows he doesn’t mean it the way everyone else does. But when he said _ weak - _he meant that. He really, truly, sincerely wanted to call Galo weak. He wanted Galo to feel that. He wanted Galo to hurt. He wanted to hurt Galo. 

And that may be justified.

Galo doesn’t know the people at the prison. So when the woman calls him up and tells him Kray has allowed his visit, he doesn’t know how to thank her. He doesn’t know what to say. He’s feeling a little vulnerable at the moment. And the last person he actually wants to see right now is Kray Foresight. Why did he come here? Was this really for himself? Or was this to prove to Lio that he has control over his own life?

Was this to prove something that didn’t need to be proven? 

But when he sees Kray for the first time since - it - since everything - he remembers: he made this choice. This was his decision. He wanted to come here. He’s been wanting to come here. Because there are some things he needs to say. There are things he needs to hear too, but he’s not sure he’s going to get that. He’s not counting on that, anyway. He’s just aware of the stuff in his chest he needs to get out of there. Galo is a very simple creature; that’s why people call him stupid. He knows what he knows and he does what he can with that knowledge.

And he knows he needs this.

There’s a lot of breathlessness when he sits down across from his former hero for the first time in months. He looks well. Half of Galo expected - wanted, maybe - him to look unkempt; a wreck. But he looks like he’s doing fine. He hasn’t lost any weight, hasn’t gained any, his hair is still slicked back as usual. Maybe a little longer. Galo isn’t sure. He never understood Kray’s hair anyway.

He supposes that’s a little hypocritical of him as he lets his hair flop forward against the table below him. 

“I’m surprised you didn’t reject my visit.”

Kray doesn’t reply. Galo takes a deep breath. He can’t look up. He can’t look at him. He wants to - wants to know what his face looks like. Not what his _ face _looks like because he unfortunately knows that all too well. He wants to see his expression. He wants to see if he’s happy, sad - there are probably better words for those but Galo is an idiot so he doesn’t know them. All he knows is he wishes he could stomach Kray Foresight better than this.

“Should I have let you live?”

That’s what he says. Because that’s what he’s thinking. Did Kray deserve that? He so carelessly and easily killed the Burnish. Life meant nothing to him when it belonged to someone else. And why? Why did Kray hate them so much anyway?

Galo’s head lifts a bit and he remembers. Oh yeah. Kray’s missing limb. That’s why he hated them so much. He was one.

It’s more complicated than Galo ever thinks. He didn’t lose his arm in some accident in that ‘rescue mission;’ he lost his arm because he set it on fire. Clumsily. Ragefully. He had a Burnish episode and burned off his own arm. And then Galo ran into them. Galo saved _ himself. _That’s what he’s really gathering from all this. He ran out, right into Kray’s chest. And Kray picked him up with the limb he had left, carried him away and used him. Immediately. He didn’t ask if anyone else was in the house. He just whisked Galo away into a whirlwind of self-serving gratitude. He was using Galo to thank himself for saving him. And he didn’t even really save him!

“Was it all a mistake?” Galo says. And he means more than just letting him live. Was trusting him a mistake? Was caring for him a mistake? There’s old footage of the day Kray gave him that badge of honor for capturing Lio. He sees it in his own face, the genuine adoration and respect he has for Kray. The way he looks up at Kray in those videos makes him sick now. The sparkle in his eye for the man he admired more than anything else in the world. The man he treated like a father. And maybe Galo never really understood how important a father was since his own didn’t exactly act like one. But that’s what he thought of Kray. Important. Like a father.

“It was all so easy for me,” he says. “Because I wasn’t Burnish. Lio would’ve let you die.”

He pauses.

“Lio wanted to be the reason for it,” he adds. “He wanted to be the cause of your death.”

Lio wanted Kray’s death certificate to say, _ “Cause of death: Lio Fotia.” _

Cause of death: the Burnish will always be free.

Galo is finding now that nothing is easy. It isn’t easy to hate to Kray; it isn’t easy to believe in him, either. He can’t even look at him. He thought this would help but maybe Lio was right. It’s pointless. Being here with a silent Kray Foresight. It doesn’t help. Galo’s an idiot. Galo’s a fucking idiot.

“Does my face still disgust you?” he asks. Not that he’s really looking for an answer. “Do you still hate it? Hate me?”

Galo feels selfish because that might have been the hardest part. His heart skipped a beat in that cave when Lio revealed with Kray was doing. But it skipped two beats when Kray’s fist connected with his gut. It skipped three beats when Kray revealed he’d hated him since day one. It skipped four when Kray wanted him imprisoned. Dead.

He flatlined when he realized his hero was not heroic. Maybe that was the feeling he should have had when he found out about the Burnish. But he has to admit that it wasn’t. What hurt the most was the personal insult. It hurt more when Kray told him to stop calling him ‘Gov’ than it did when Lio told him the Burnish were being dissected and killed. Galo knows that’s not okay. But it’s the truth. And Galo has always been one to prefer a harsh truth to an easy lie.

He sort of wishes Lio were here right now because there’s a lot he wants to tell him and none of it good. None of it easy. None of it something that Galo will remember in a moment. Everything is happening so fast. Kray sits there silently, wordlessly, motionlessly. But everything is still going so quickly that Galo fears his brain will catch on fire. And that’s the kind of fire Galo can’t put out.

“I’m glad you’re still here,” he admits. “I’m glad I know you’re still alive. Just a few blocks away. Some stuff doesn’t go away that easily.” He’s saying this for his own comfort. Not Kray’s. “I can’t just forget how important you were to me. I can’t erase my past. I can’t get rid of something that made me who I am.” He hesitates. “You made me who I am.”

The question is whether or not who Galo is is worthwhile. 

Maybe Kray did make him who he is, but is it for the better? Is Galo a good person? Lio says he is. Lio _ said _he is. Maybe he doesn’t think so anymore. Maybe Galo is just a weak fool to Lio now. Maybe Galo was good back when Lio thought he could easily hate Kray, the genocidal man with a dictator’s fantasy. And to be sure, there is nothing good about what Kray is or was. It doesn’t matter that he did a few good things. Because the intention never was. The motivation behind those actions was always evil. 

Should Galo change everything about himself? Every fundamental thing about his personality must come from Kray somehow.

Lio’s right. He _ is _weak. He’s so weak that he’s questioning who he is just because of the man in front of him. Or maybe that’s what makes him strong? He’s no fool. He’s not going to sit here and convince himself he’s a good person just because a few people said so. He knows deep down he’s modeled after an evil man. So that makes him evil, too. His actions were just as evil as Kray’s. And now he’s sitting here wondering if he deserves comfort? For what? For being an idiot?

This is when he realizes everything is going around in circles. All his thoughts race around in one giant loop. They always come back to one general idea, though:

_ IS GALO STUPID? _

“Do you think I’m as dumb as you always thought?” he asks. Eyes still fixated on the table below him. “Or am I more weak? Am I more of a weakling or more of a fool? Which do you think?”

He doesn’t expect an answer. And he doesn’t get one. He’s been sitting here with Kray for about six minutes now, even though it feels like six hours. Six years. He feels like he’s been here for fifteen years, which is about how long he’s known Kray. That decade and a half of Galo’s life has been consolidated all to this one moment: sitting across from the man who made him who he is in a prison. No shackles, no bars between them. They aren’t speaking on a phone. They’re face-to-face, not that Galo can actually look him in the eye.

It’s all so stupid. Galo _ is _ weak. Galo _ is _stupid.

He once felt so fulfilled. He didn’t quite understand angst back when Kray saved him because he was just a child. But he hardly grew to understand it either, because he always felt purposeful. He felt like he knew what he was doing and he had a good reason to be doing what he was doing. Kray believed in him so much he went to Ignis and asked that he be placed in Burning Rescue. Even Remi, arguably one of the smartest people he knows, agreed he had the aptitude to be in Burning Rescue. So he’s not an idiot. _ He’s demonstrably not an idiot, _demonstrated notably by the fact that he knows the word ‘demonstrably.’ But maybe intelligence isn’t measured by words you know. It’s measured by how you feel. It’s measured by knowing who you are, not the right words to say.

Intelligence is measured by feeling worthwhile. Intelligence is measured by understanding who you are and what you stand for. It’s feeling good about yourself and what you do. And Galo doesn’t feel like he understands a single thing about himself anymore. He once looked at his hero and felt depressed he wasn’t as important as him. Now he looks at his hero and feels depressed that he might be just as bad.

There was a time in his life that nothing made him insecure. He was proud and he was confident. He fought for what was right - what he thought was right - and he worked with people who he thought did the same. But now he looks in the mirror and… he hesitates to say he hates himself, but only because it sounds overdramatic. He doesn’t _ hate _ himself. Not in a self-deprecating way, at least. He doesn’t hate himself because he needs attention or reassurance. He hates himself because he knows himself. He knows he doesn’t deserve the attention and reassurance. He gets it anyway, and _ that’s _ why he hates himself. Because he gets love he doesn’t deserve. He gets love _ other people _deserve.

And then he feels sorry for himself because he feels unloved. What more does Lio have to do to prove he loves Galo? _ For fucks sake, Galo. Just accept that Lio loves you and move on. _

Why did he so easily accept that Kray loved him when he didn’t? Why did he believe it so implicitly? And now that Lio cares for him, he can only bring him to negativity? He _ made _ Lio call him weak by _ being _weak. Stop this charade of deep thought and be a fucking moron. Stop thinking. Stop thinking so much. This is too much.

He slams his fist down on the table but can see out of the corner of his eye that Kray doesn’t move a muscle. He clenches his fist together even harder and groans into his own throat.

“You ruined… everything…” he says shakily. He’s not going to cry. Not out of sadness, at least. He’s not going to cry because he’s weak. He’s about to cry because he’s _ angry. _ “Everything I knew… you took it and you just… ruined it. Now I don’t know anything. But maybe I never did. I _ am _an idiot, right?”

Kray doesn’t have an answer for Galo and Galo doesn’t care. 

“I guess I came here to hear you say it,” Galo says. “I wanted you to confirm it, what Lio told me. I am weak. I _ am. _I’m weak and I deserve to hear that. I’m a weak idiot and I can’t fix that. I’ve tried. I’ve been trying my whole life. I’ve been overconfident and undeservedly proud. I never had a reason to feel that way. I shouldn’t have. I should have never felt good about myself because there was nothing to feel good about. Was there?”

Ugh, this is all so self-loathing. That is _ not _what Galo is about. I was just worried because I thought Lio was mad at me. Now I’m really about to have a nervous breakdown. My brain is going a mile a minute.” He pauses. “I mean… a hundred miles a minute.” One mile a minute isn’t really that fast, he realizes. “I really am an idiot.”

He puts his face in his hands and rubs his eyes. They’re wet, but not teary, exactly. He does wipe away what moisture is there and it’s obvious he’s close to crying. But he hasn’t yet. And he doesn’t want Kray to have the satisfaction of making him cry, not that it’s Kray’s doing. It’s his own. His brain has never worked this way before. It’s usually so simple. Such a one-track thought process. The train that runs through his brain is naturally slow and calculated so this erratic journey he’s taking right now really has his heart racing and his palms sweaty.

He shakes his hands out to try to get rid of the excess energy. Then he takes a deep breath and tries his hardest to consolidate. What is it he’s thinking? What is the one sentence he can make that will gather up all his trains of thought and make one, coherent concept? What is it he’s _ really _thinking?

“Do I deserve to be in love if I’ve never deserved the love I’ve gotten my whole life?”

Kray’s head tips up. It’s the first bit of movement Galo’s seen from him the entire time, so he finally looks up, too. Their eyes meet and Galo’s heart is in his throat. That’s when the tears finally start to fall. He looked him in the face before, but now their gazes finally find each other and old feelings start to swell inside him. It was just a few months ago that his life was the same day in and day out. It really hasn’t been that long since everything changed.

“Are you in love with someone, Galo?”

His eyes go wide. It’s the first thing Kray has said and it has nothing to do with what’s been going on inside his head this whole time. Why was _ love _the thing that came out of Galo’s mouth? It’s none of Kray’s business and even that single, innocuous sentence was dripping with some kind of sarcasm that Galo can’t place. As if Kray doesn’t know who. As if Kray has to ask.

“Yes.”

Kray smiles but he doesn’t say anything else. He doesn’t ask who - he already knows. He doesn’t tell Galo he’s worthy of Lio’s love in return - but he doesn’t tell Galo he’s worth_ less, _either. He just sits there and smiles like he used to. He really only has one smile and Galo finally realizes that’s because it isn’t real. Kray has to feign a smile, so he only has the single one. It’s not real. It’s false. A crocodile smile.

“Are you going to say anything else to me?”

Galo finally asks it because he’s sick of thinking. He’s sick of his own thoughts. He’s not used to them. He’s not used to having thoughts. It’s like an entire lifetime of _ thought _ is catching up to him all at once so he wants to make _ Kray _do some thinking now. Make someone else talk. Make someone else responsible for where this conversation goes.

But Kray just sighs and looks away. Smile still in place.

“You certainly do still talk a lot,” he says. “Some things never change. It’s nice.”

“What’s nice?”

“That you’re still Galo,” he says. It’s not what Galo wanted to hear. And then: “Lio’s visits are a lot quieter.”

…

Galo’s brain goes empty.

“L-Lio’s visits?”

Kray doesn’t reply. He knows what he’s done. He waited until the perfect moment to say it, too. Impeccable timing. Kray has always had that going for him.

Galo’s eyes blink haphazardly. He’s trying to understand Kray’s words. _ Lio’s visits are a lot quieter. _

That means Lio sits here in complete silence. He doesn’t let little snippets of his thoughts out. He isn’t that vulnerable. 

That means Lio has come more than once. Visit_ s _. Plural. Lio comes here.

That means Lio comes here.

That means Lio has visited Kray in prison before. That means Lio has lied to him. That means Lio has at least omitted the truth, which is just as bad as lying.

That means Lio has told him time and time again not to visit. To let Kray rot. He’s told Galo how to live his life; how to recover; how to survive after trauma. He’s told Galo what he needs. He’s told Galo what he _ should _ need at least; he’s told Galo what he should and shouldn’t _ have to need _ in order to _ get over _what happened to him.

That means Lio comes here.

And that’s when Galo feels rage.

His entire body starts to shake and his hands ball into fists again. He can’t believe this. He can’t believe Lio. He can’t imagine it. He can’t picture Lio in this seat instead of him. Staring down Kray Foresight. He can’t even begin to think what it would look like because Lio has made it so clear that he just _ wants him to rot here forever, no one needs to visit him, no one needs to hear the words of a megalomaniac killer - _

It’s not that Lio needs that. No. That doesn’t bother Galo at all. Because he understands. He understands because he needs it, too.

It’s that Lio needs it but can’t allow Galo to need it. 

That’s what enrages him.

He’s up and out of the seat before anyone can stop him, not that anyone would. Kray is probably glad to see him go - he surely only said what he did in order to spur Galo to leave in the first place. He knew hearing that Lio came around would instill a seed of anger in him. Maybe he didn’t think it would become this strong, but he knew Galo would hate to hear it. Galo wouldn’t want to know about Lio and Kray together. So Kray did what he does best: he ruined Galo’s life and then got rid of him.

Lio’s rage was always justified. Lio should have been angry. He should have cared so much that his emotions got the better of him and spilled over the brim. Lio isn’t embarrassed that he almost killed innocent people. He’s embarrassed that he showed emotions so recklessly. And now Galo understands it. Because he’s certainly unable to hide his emotions right now as he’s storming out of the prison, to his bike and firing up the engine faster than his brain can keep up with.

His brain’s been working overtime tonight, so he forgives it. It’s funny though that he’s spent the entire night overthinking everything and now that he’s on his bike, all he can think about is - well, nothing. There’s not a single thought in his brain other than pure, unbridled anger. A rage he’s never really felt before.

Why is it directed at Lio? He doesn’t understand. He feels some guilt and agony too; they once teamed up to direct their rage at Kray. Now Kray has Galo headed for Lio’s place, his emotions funneling in on _ him, _the person who was meant to be his soulmate.

His soulmate.

He’s Galo’s soulmate. 

That used to make him calmer. The thought of his _ soulmate _used to make Galo chill out. He’d relax and nothing really felt as bad. Someone like Lio loved him, romantically or not. It was love. And he knows that it still is. Just because they have a fight doesn’t mean they don’t love each other anymore. But right now, it’s just fueling this fire. Because his soulmate is supposed to be the one who comforts him. But right now, his soulmate is the reason he believes he doesn’t deserve that comfort.

That’s why he goes to Lio’s. Because he needs this fixed right now. If it’s better that they break up - that they just _ stop being soulmates - _ then so be it. Galo is fine with that. Well, he’s not _ fine _ with that, he’d prefer it _ not _happen, but if that’s what’s going to bring him closure, then whatever. As long as he has that closure.

Of course, there’s that _ incredibly _ confusing part of Galo that would prefer to just, kiss or something. He’s never kissed Lio. But he’d like to right now. But angrily. An angry kiss. Not one that Lio doesn’t consent to, just one that will be fueled with a rage that Galo sees in movies and never understood. He understands it now, that feeling of wanting to yell at _ and _kiss the same person at the same time. 

Unfortunately, he wants to kiss Lio because he feels it might be his one and only chance. He’s so angry - and Lio’s so angry - that this might not be fixable. They may not be able to forgive each other after this. Lio knows what Galo has just done so he’s aware Kray may have betrayed their secret. He shouldn’t be surprised, though. Kray is so evil that Lio _ knows _if he had a chance to sow discontent between the two of them - the two responsible for his downfall - he would. 

So when Lio opens the door that Galo is pounding on as if he’s expecting him, Galo isn’t surprised.

“Let me in,” he barks. Lio steps aside and does so, his hair in his face, covering his eyes so Galo can’t see them. But he seems resigned. Calm. He even puts his hand out to usher Galo in and when he closes the door, Galo can’t remember why he’s mad. He just knows he’s furious. And if this is the end, then fine. Let it be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please note: no one agrees on how the scientific method actually goes, so take my chapter titles with a grain of salt
> 
> this is the penultimate chapter! next week will be the last one! i've been kicking around an AU idea for a while but i don't have anything set in stone yet. so we'll see what happens!


	7. conclusion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I can’t imagine having the privilege of being loved by Galo Thymos and not valuing it more than your own life.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry guys, things got really busy this holiday season and this is barely beta'ed. I really wanted to get it out though because it's sort of time-sensitive, you'll see at the end!

“So he told you.”

Lio doesn’t ask it; he says it like he already knows. And he does. He  _ should.  _ Galo is aware of that. He’s suddenly acutely aware that he’s still wearing a suit and nice shoes because when he turns to see Lio in sweatpants and a big t-shirt he suddenly is extremely self-conscious.

“I feel very overdressed for this fight,” he says. Lio stifles a smile. Galo doesn’t blame him. “Is that my shirt?”

“Yep.”

“How could you do this to me?”

“Do what?” Lio asks genuinely. He looks at Galo, brushing his hair out of his eyes and shakes his head. “You really thought I never went to talk to Kray after all this?”

“I really thought that,” Galo says. “Because you  _ led  _ me to believe that, don’t act like I’m the idiot here. You  _ know  _ you did.”

He looks at the floor for a moment and presses his lips together. Then he nods.

“Yes,” he relents. “You’re right. I did want you to think I hadn’t seen him. But that’s not because I was trying to keep a secret from you.”

“Oh?” Galo asks. “Then why was it?”

“Because I thought if you knew that I’d talked to him, you’d think you wanted to, too.”

Galo throws his hands up in the air.

“You make me sound like a child!” he shouts. “Like I can’t make my own choices without seeing you do it first! I wanted to talk to Kray for  _ me,  _ not because I saw you do it!”

“I know…”

“I’m not an idiot!” he cries. “I’m so sick of people treating me like I’m  _ that  _ kind of idiot! I know what I need! I don’t need you to tell me!”

“I know, Galo.”

“I can’t believe you kept telling me not to visit him and you were doing it yourself the whole time,” Galo says. Lio grunts.

“You don’t understand my point of view.”

“Okay,” Galo shrugs. “Tell me it. Tell me your point of view.”

“You visiting Kray would just be damaging. It’s not the same for me.”

“What?!”

“I  _ needed  _ to face him again. You didn’t. Seeing him for me was closure. Seeing him for you is just a reminder.”

“A reminder of what?”

“That he didn’t care about you.”

Galo stops. He pouts a bit as he wills himself not to get angry. He flexes his hands in and out of fists, not at all because he’s thinking about getting violent with Lio, but because it helps him draw the sweat out of his palms. He takes a few steps forwards and backwards to walk it out, too. He’s a little antsy at times like these.

Kray didn’t care about him.

He knows. He knows that. It’s true.

“I’m aware,” he says quietly. Slowly. “That doesn’t mean you have to say it like that.” Lio doesn’t respond. “It hurts.”

“I’m sorry,” he says. “But it’s true.”

“I  _ know,”  _ Galo says through gritted teeth. “You don’t have to tell me it constantly.”

“Okay.” Lio nods. “I’m sorry. I only say it because I just…”

Galo looks at him. He almost seems to be trying to suppress tears himself.

“Because you just…?”

“I’m so angry at him,” he shudders. He  _ is  _ trying not to cry. “There’s so much I’m mad at him for. Obviously. But when I get all the obvious stuff out of the way, I’m left with just…”

Galo takes a step closer. He doesn’t understand where Lio is going with this.

“It’s okay,” he says quietly. “Take your time.”

“I’m mad!” he shouts. “I’m mad because being mad is what gets things done! But everyone knows that! Everyone knows why I’m mad. Everyone knows why I hate him. They think it’s because of what he did to the Burnish and it is. Most of it is.”

“Most?”

“When I peel all that back… when I realize that he’s getting what he had coming to him for that… I mean, he can’t ever truly pay for what he did, but there’s still stuff there that he never had to atone for.”

Galo frowns.

“Like what?”

“Like what he did to you.”

Galo is taken aback. What he did to  _ him?  _ It’s not a surprise that Lio cares about that, but… Galo didn’t know he cared so  _ much. _

“What he did to me?”

“I don’t mean to say he didn’t care about you to hurt you,” he says. “I don’t mean to bring it up to make you upset. I just… have to get it out of there sometimes so it stops sitting in my head alone, clattering around. I have to say it to get people to understand.”

“Understand what?”

“How much I hate him for hurting you, too!”

Galo stills. He certainly wasn’t expecting that, though he’s not sure what he was expecting from all this. Moments ago, he sat across from evil incarnate, wondering if he was worthy of love. Now he’s standing with his soulmate, wondering how he could have ever doubted that.

“He… hurt the Burnish far worse.”

“He did,” Lio agrees. “Killing people doesn’t compare to anything. But that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve to hurt. I just hate seeing that. I just want you to be over him.”

“That’s not your place to decide,” Galo says. “You’re the one person who never thought I was dumb. But you’re treating me like I can’t decide what’s best for myself.

“I know!” he shouts. “I’m sorry! It’s just - I can’t imagine feeling… I just… I feel the way you love people, and… I just… ”

“Take your time.”

Lio licks his lips and looks at the ground. He’s definitely considering how to word this, which makes Galo think it’s probably going to hurt, too.

“I can’t imagine having the privilege of being loved by Galo Thymos and not valuing it more than your own life.”

_ Oh. _

Well that didn’t hurt at all.

It did make Galo’s heart race, but in a way that feels more like soaring than pounding. It leaps from Galo’s chest, through his throat and out his mouth and lands on the floor between them, sputtering and confused. What Lio just said - that might have, legitimately, been the nicest thing anyone’s ever said  _ to  _ or  _ about  _ Galo. Ever. 

It was beyond praise. It was something someone only says when they  _ really  _ love someone else. It implies so much. Galo doesn’t know what to do with it. He ends up turning away in embarrassment and rubbing the back of his head. 

But Lio is grabbing his hand and urging him to look back. He does, but he can feel his face redden.

“Did that embarrass you?”

“Yes.”

“It embarrassed me, too,” Lio admits. There’s a long pause. “But it’s true. Kray had a lot. He had an empire. But he also had you. That’s why I keep double guessing this politics stuff. I don’t want power. I don’t need it. I would use it for good but who am I to decide what’s ultimately good or bad? All I know is that if I have you, I’m happy. That makes me feel powerful enough.”

All the air comes out of Galo’s lungs in one, long breath and he has to look up at the ceiling. He’s just so flustered by all this praise that he wasn’t expecting - praise that’s so unlike what he usually gets. It’s never felt insincere from other people but from Lio it’s just so much more meaningful. He feels a little bad for that. It’s not like Ignis or Aina mean less to him. Lio just means  _ so much. _

And in that vein -

“I feel good when you’re around,” he blurts out. Lio quirks an eyebrow up - maybe his lip curls into a smile too, but Galo is too focused on his speech: “I feel different. A way I’ve never felt before. I feel like…” He looks away to think. He doesn’t really know what he wants to say, so he just digs into his core to figure out how he really feels. “I feel powerful, too. Like I can save the world with you, because I did. We really did that. That really happened. I can’t speak right now.”

“Me neither.”

“I was so mad when I got here,” Galo says. “But then it just…”

“Melted away?”

Galo closes his eyes. 

“Yeah.”

“That happens to me a lot when I see you, too.”

Galo sighs. 

“So what did Kray say?”

Lio’s voice is small but grave. He’s tonguing the back of his teeth anxiously and looking up at Galo with serious eyes. He wants to know. He wants to hear the gory details. Unfortunately, there aren’t many.

“Nothing,” Galo says.

“You can tell me.”

“No,” Galo insists. “He didn’t speak the whole time. I just asked him some questions… like should I have let him live? I told him you would’ve killed him. Most of the time I just there like a lump, thinking about… whatever, thinking about stupid stuff. And then at the end he said I talk a lot as usual and that your visits are usually much quieter.”

Lio doesn’t answer immediately. He looks at the floor in shame and rubs his arm nervously.

“What did you think about?”

Galo hesitates.

“I don’t know that I could tell you at this point,” he says. “I thought so much so fast that I just… I don’t usually think like that. That many thoughts don’t go through my brain at once. So I didn’t know what to make of it. I felt like my brain was going to catch on fire and I wouldn’t be able to put that one out.”

“I know the feeling,” Lio says. “I get like that around him, too. That’s why he said our visits are so quiet.”

“So… what do  _ you  _ think about?”

Lio rubs his face with both hands and sighs. 

“I think about all the Burnish who weren’t as lucky as me,” he says. “The Burnish who weren’t as powerful so they couldn’t fight back. All the ones I was too late to save.”

“Lio-”

“It’s not my fault,” he shrugs. “That’s what I tell myself. I know it’s true logically. But logic doesn’t really matter. Logic doesn’t prevail over emotion all the time. And all I can think about is that I was too late and now I’m the one with the privilege of sitting there. Like a lump.”

“He’s intimidating, even when he’s imprisoned,” Galo offers. Lio nods.

“I’ve always been scared of him,” he says. “That’s my big secret. I’m still scared of Kray Foresight.”

“You should be!” Galo insists. “There’s no shame in that. He killed your people. And there’s no bravery without fear.”

“Huh?”

“You can’t be brave if you’re not scared in the first place,” Galo says. “Otherwise you’re just running into danger head-first for no reason.”

“Like you?” Lio smiles. Galo can’t help but grin.

“Yep,” he says. “Just like me. I run into the burning buildings because I’m not scared of anything!”

“Anything?” Lio asks. The air starts to turn more comfortable; more like how it usually is. “ _ Nothing  _ scares you?”

“I was scared when I thought I’d lost you,” Galo says. Lio’s smile disappears and he turns away. “But when you started to breathe again, it all… melted away.”

“Like snow in the sun,” Lio sing-songs under his breath. Galo smiles wider.

“Like ice under fire,” Galo says. Lio shakes his head.

“So do you think you’ll be visiting Kray again?”

Galo looks up at the ceiling in thought. It’s a good question. He didn’t exactly get what he wanted, that’s true. But he’s not sure he’ll ever get that - he’s not even sure what he  _ wants.  _ He stormed out because of Lio but now… 

“I don’t know,” he says. “I left because I was so mad at you. So I don’t know if I got what I wanted. Would you be mad if I went back?”

“Galo…” Lio says. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been mad and I shouldn’t have called you weak for wanting to talk to Kray. You don’t need my permission to do something that you need to do for you.”

“I know. But I want to know. Would you be mad?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

“Then you were only mad before because…?”

“Because I wanted you to be okay with us,” he says. “With all of us. Everyone you have right now. I wanted to be enough for you.”

Galo’s mouth opens.

“Lio…”

“But if I’m not enough, then that’s not a -”

“You  _ are  _ enough,” Galo says. “You’re enough. You are.”

“It’s okay if I’m not,” Lio says. “In fact, I don’t think any one person can be everything to someone else. You need more than me.”

“But you’re enough…” Galo says. He tries to figure out exactly what he means. “You’re enough for me. I know you can’t be there for me all day, every day… but when you  _ are  _ there for me, it’s enough. I don’t need anyone else.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“Am I enough for you?”

“I wouldn’t have felt so bad if you weren’t.”

“Huh?”

“I wouldn’t have wanted to be enough for you alone if you weren’t enough for me,” he clarifies. “I know you love me because I feel it every day.”

“You think I love you?”

Lio cocks his head to the side.

“What, you aren’t going to say that’s only for romance, are you?” he asks. “Two soulmates can’t just love each other?”

“So,” Galo says carefully. “You only love me platonically?”

Lio seems to freeze in place. It makes Galo freeze, too. The question shouldn’t have been too hard to answer. But the fact that Lio is having a problem answering it must mean… 

“I love you, that’s what matters.”

“But just  _ how  _ do you love me?”

“Are you asking if I’m in love with you? Like, romantically?”

“Do you feel like I love you?”

“What?”

“Tell me,” Galo says. “Do you think I love you?”

“Yes.”

“How?”

“What?”

“How do you think I love you?”

Lio seems to be at what Galo would call a decision point. He looks out the window. Then looks back to Galo. His eyelids flutter a bit but he finally opens them fully, stares Galo down and says it:

“I think if I kissed you right now you wouldn’t pull away.”

Galo  _ does  _ freeze. Lio is a few steps away - close, but not close enough to kiss. And Galo has to say something. He has to reply. He has to will his brain to come up with anything. Anything at all.

“Well,” he says quietly. “Why don’t you test that hypothesis?”

Lio’s eyes go wide. Maybe he wasn’t expecting Galo to answer positively. Or maybe he’s just scared to touch him. But either way, he closes the gap, practically runs into Galo’s arms, and pulls his face down to kiss him. He kisses him right there, in his living room, right next to the window for all of Promepolis to see.

His lips are exactly as Galo remembers. Soft, which is probably how most people’s lips are, but they’re  _ delicate.  _ Lio is small but he isn’t  _ delicate  _ like his lips are. Lio is a force and his kiss is a storm that Galo wasn’t prepared for in the best way possible. This time, touching his lips to Lio’s only fills him with a relaxed relief rather than a desperate hopefulness. Relief that their fight is over, it seems. 

Maybe things aren’t fixed. But this is going to put a lot of things into perspective.

Lio doesn’t really move. The kiss is a single, solid moment in Galo’s life. There’s nothing lewd about it. It’s romantic in every sense of the word and when Lio pulls back, he breathes in heavily, as if he’s desperate for air. Galo is, too.

They stand there for a moment. Galo staring down at the top of Lio’s head and Lio’s eyes boring a hole into Galo’s chest. Galo doesn’t realize that their hands are intertwined until just then, and he squeezes Lio’s palms with his fingers.

“Maybe we’ve been fighting so much lately because we wanted to do that so bad,” Lio says.

“I think that’s definitely part of it.”

“Do you wanna do it again?”

“Yes, please.”

This time, Galo puts his arms around Lio’s waist and Lio leans into them, ready to leap up with Galo lifts him off the ground. He wraps his legs around Galo’s hips and holds his face in his hands again, kissing him deeper this time. After a few seconds, he pushes his tongue against Galo’s lips and Galo’s eyes go wide. He  _ is  _ trying to go a little lewder, and Galo wasn’t prepared for that. Not that he doesn’t want it.

He parts his lips. This is his first kiss in a long time. He’s kind of forgotten how to do it. But Lio doesn’t seem to notice. He pulls his tongue back out and kisses him one last time before he takes his mouth off Galo’s and shudders against him.

“We probably have more stuff to figure out before we go much further,” he whispers. “Even though I want to.”

“It’ll be even better if we wait,” Galo says, stepping backwards towards the couch. Lio’s eyes go a bit wide as Galo crashes down onto it and Lio flops around in his lap. “We should probably get the talking out of the way first.”

So Lio crawls out of his lap after giving his nose one last kiss, and that’s what they do. They talk. Lio apologizes again for treating Galo like an idiot and Galo forgives him. Galo tells him he isn’t sure an idiot like him is worthy of Lio’s love and Lio has to kiss him once again to make him stop saying something that ridiculous. Galo asks if his ignorance is something Lio can get past and Lio tells him he already has. He reminds Galo that he believes ignorance is only ignorance when one knows what they’re doing is wrong. Galo belongs - well,  _ belonged -  _ to an oppressive class so it was easy to not know he was wrong. But when he found out, he changed. He learned. He let his opinions change. 

Galo wonders aloud if Kray was ignorant. Lio says no, he was evil and Galo actually laughs. Lio tells him it’s complicated, there was internal hatred for Kray but that was only a seed perpetuated by a society that already discriminated against them. Kray wouldn’t have hated himself without being taught to and Galo shakes his head, tells Lio he’s so smart and Lio smiles. He reminds Galo that he’s not an idiot either, and Galo kisses him. He likes this new thing they get to do. Whenever Galo isn’t sure how to appreciate Lio’s words out loud, he just kisses him again. This is so helpful. He sort of wishes he could do it with just anyone, but he also doesn’t really want to. Lio is the only person he wants to kiss.

They fall asleep together that night, this time not on opposite sides of the bed but sharing the middle. Galo on his back and Lio with an arm wrapped around his chest. Galo plays with Lio’s hair for a while until he falls asleep, wondering what this makes them. Are they boyfriends now? Or are they just pre-boyfriends? Is that a thing? He doesn’t know. He doesn’t know anything about dating. He assumes relationships can be whatever he wants them to be, but he asks Lio the next morning anyway, just to make sure.

“What do you want to be?” he answers, standing in the middle of the bedroom and pulling on a sweatshirt. 

“Is that my sweatshirt?”

“Of course.”

“Have you been stealing my clothes for months because you liked me?”

Lio looks up at him.

“Wait, you didn’t know that?”

“No!” Galo shouts. “I thought you just wanted my clothes.”

“You didn’t know I liked you?” Lio asks.

“Did you know I liked you?”

“You didn’t act like you liked me,” Lio tells him. “I made it pretty clear a few times.”

“Well, I’m an idiot,” Galo waves him off. “All I do is fight fires and look good for a crowd. So does that mean we’re boyfriends, then?”

“Is that what you want?” Lio asks again. Galo doesn’t really need to consider it, but he pretends to think it over anyway.

“Well, you already have half my clothes,” he says. “And that’s part of being boyfriends, right? Stealing each other’s clothes?”

“You can steal some of mine but you’d mostly just use them as pillow cases.”

“Some of those belts and straps might be helpful,” Galo says. “And we already know where all the groceries go in each other’s houses.” Then something occurs to him. He frowns a little and looks at the sheet, wondering if he should bring it up. “But… are you really moving in Guiera and Meis?”

Lio looks away. He thinks for a moment and then sighs.

“We were talking about it, that wasn’t a lie,” he says. “I’m just really lonely here on my own.”

“I understand.”

“And the three of us lived in such close quarters for so long that we already know we get along.”

“Yeah.”

“Does it make you feel weird?”

“No,” Galo says. “I just…”

“What?” Lio asks. “Say it.”

“Why did you choose them and not me?”

Lio smiles.

“Isn’t that obvious?”

“Not to me.”

“Because I  _ liked  _ you,” Lio says. “It would have been hard to room with someone I really liked. Every day I’d get nervous. And if we want to date… I don’t know.”

“We know we room together well, we already did for a while,” Galo says. “Even if that was before you knew you liked me.”

“It wasn’t,” Lio says. Galo looks at him quickly.

“Huh?”

“I liked you since that fist bump,” he says. “Maybe even before.”

“Before the fist bump?!” Galo cries. 

“What?”

“We hardly knew each other!”

“I like a nice moron,” Lio shrugs. “You got naked the first time we met, what can I say?”

Galo is suddenly self-conscious. He can’t help but wonder when he’ll get naked for Lio again. It isn’t like he does it for no reason. But he’s sort of expected to get naked with a boyfriend, isn’t he? Not that he doesn’t want to.

“You really liked me right away?”

“Not the way I do now,” he shrugs. “Maybe I was just attracted to you. But it wasn’t until the cave that I realized you might actually be a decent person. A worthwhile human being.” He doesn’t give Galo a chance to say anything in response. “So when did you realize you liked me?”

Galo blinks.

“Well,” he says, thinking back. “The day I realized it was when Aina and you had a conversation at Burning Rescue. She ran into me later and made it obvious to me. She basically asked if I liked you and I realized I did.”

“She got on my back for it too,” Lio says. Galo breathes in guiltily. He rubs the back of his head and decides to confess:

“I know. I…  _ Remi  _ wanted to listen in. So we stood outside and listened.”

“I know,” Lio nods. “We could see your hair, doofus.”

Galo deflates.

“Well, that was when I realized it,” he says dumbly. “So we have Aina to thank for this.”

“We do,” Lio says. His voice is a little defeated. Galo wonders if he should leave it alone, but he decides to say something.

“You know, Aina really likes you,” he says. “I know she understands why you have an issue with her. But it would be cool if y-”

“I know,” Lio cuts him off. “It’s not Aina. I like Aina.”

“It’s her sister.”

“I try not to,” he says. “But I wonder if everything would be different if she…”

“I know,” Galo says. He doesn’t want Lio to have to wish Heris’ existence away, so he cuts him off. “Aina doesn’t expect you to just get over it.”

“That’s why I like Aina.”

“I just want you to know,” Galo shrugs. “Aina is my best friend and she means a lot to me. It would mean even more if my best friend and my soulmate got along.”

Lio looks at the floor with a smile. He nods a little and then gazes up at Galo with big eyes.

“I know,” he says. “I’ll work on it.”

Galo smiles. That’s all he can ask.

\------

The New Year’s party at Burning Rescue is a little lowkey, but it’s nice to open the truck door and let the sounds of the city celebrating a new year come in. People are running past in hats with noisemakers and Galo has had his fair share of interactions with strangers already tonight, which is some of his favorite kind of interactions. Groups of girls running past in high heels who hit on him, couples who are so involved in their own business they hardly notice him. Friends who are just happy to be with each other. Galo loves it all.

It’s almost midnight, but Galo has had enough champagne already. He wasn’t supposed to open it until New Year’s, but he told Ignis he figured it was better to ask permission than forgiveness. Ignis said he didn’t forgive him regardless and then poured himself a shot.

Lucia is messing with Remi, who’s looking to Varys for defense, who’s pretending not to notice. Ignis watches Vinny run around in circles and Aina sits on the couch with a champagne glass in one hand and a piece of pizza in the other. Galo sits down next to her and realizes it’s time. It’s time to let her know.

“Hey.”

“Hey,” she says. She’s sure shoveling that pizza into her mouth. Galo is impressed. “What’s up?”

“Did you save any pizza for the rest of us?”

“Nope,” she smiles. “And I don’t feel bad at all.”

“Have you had as much champagne as I’ve had?”

“Probably not, but I don’t need as much,” she says. “Tiny frame.”

“You’ve drank me under the table before,” Galo tells her. “You’re still sober.”

“Maybe,” she shrugs. “I’m saving it for after midnight.”

“Right,” Galo laughs. “I’m saving… the rest for after midnight, too.”

  
There’s a silence as Aina continues eating her pizza. Galo takes a deep breath.

“Hey,” he says.

“Hey.”

“I mean… hey, I have something to tell you.”

That’s when Lio finally walks in. It’s about fifteen minutes to midnight and he  _ finally  _ waltzes in, Gueira and Meis behind him. They wave at Galo but immediately turn their attention to Lucia, who they’ve struck a bizarrely understandable friendship with. Galo is sure they’re going to help her mess with Remi. Lio nods at Galo, who puts up a finger to indicate for him to hang on. Just one minute.

“Are you doing it?” he shouts.

“Yeah!” Galo shouts back. Then he turns back to Aina.

“Doing what?”

“Saying thank you,” he says. 

Aina looks at him dumbly.

“You’re welcome.”

“You don’t know what I’m thanking you for.”

“No, but I probably deserve it,” she says, taking another bite of pizza. Galo frowns.

“Do you  _ want  _ to know?”

“I think I already do,” she tells him. “Do you have someone to kiss at midnight this year?”

Galo hadn’t even thought about that. But he supposes she’s right. He does. Lio is his  _ boyfriend  _ now. And he has Aina to thank in part. Which is what he’s doing right now.

“Yeah,” he tells her. She rolls her eyes but can’t stifle a smile. “And you had something to do with that. So thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” she says again. She finally pops the last of the pizza crust in her mouth and speaks with her mouth full: “What would you do without me?”

“I don’t know,” you say earnestly. “I really want you to understand that I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

She turns a little solemn though still smiling. She swallows the pizza down and puts an arm around Galo’s shoulders.

“Same to you, buddy.”

When Galo looks over, Lio is smiling at them. 

“Did you do it?” he shouts.

“Yeah!” Aina shouts back. “You have about fifteen minutes to get ready for a midnight kiss!”

“Aina!” Galo yells. “You’re the only one who knows!”

“They’re gonna find out when you kiss him,” she says, rising from the couch and pointing at both Galo and Lio. “They’re dating finally. So congratulations or whatever.”

No one is surprised. But Galo and Lio steal away to the rooftop in the next few minutes, saving their midnight kiss for somewhere only they know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the end!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i really hope you enjoyed this, it was shorter than i usually write but i really wanted to get the post-canon idea out of my head. 
> 
> don't forget, if you'd like to support my writing, my twitter has a lot of links. i write for a living so your support means a lot! but i'm hoping to bring more galolio to ao3 very soon :)

**Author's Note:**

> check out my [twitter](http://www.twitter.com/hereonourstreet) if you want to support my writing, both fic and original! there are links there, hint hint.


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